


Domino — Hongjoong

by yolkyeomie



Category: ATEEZ (Band), K-pop
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Mafias, Angst and Romance, Attempted Kidnapping, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Gun Violence, Idiots in Love, Love Triangles, Mentioned Other K-pop Artist(s), Minor Character Death, Minor Original Character(s), Not Really Character Death, POV Original Female Character, Possible Character Death, Strangers to Lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:00:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 50
Words: 162,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22909750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yolkyeomie/pseuds/yolkyeomie
Summary: As we grow up, we cling on to a concept of "fear".Showing signs of fear is displaying that you're weak.Destruction. Anxiety. Failure.We all spend countless hours, days, months, or even years trying to perfect our lives into our own ideal fantasy. Inevitably, we're bound to fail.Crash. Hit. Burn.We all fall like dominoes.It's time to gamble with the high stakes of life.
Relationships: Jung Wooyoung/Original Female Character(s), Kim Hongjoong/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 11





	1. Under Cover

"Can't we just talk this out?" She asked, giving the two men that stood on either side of her a smile. They glanced towards her with emotionless faces, ignoring her innocent eye batting and puppy dog eyes before turning back towards the front. They stared at nothingness as she huffed, she kicking her legs as if she was a child who didn't know how to sit patiently. "Come on! Don't you wanna help a young... helpless... girl?" She hissed as she fidgeted around, struggling against the chair she was strapped too.

Her pleas were to no avail as the men in black refused to even look at her, their hands behind their back as if they were waiting for their officer in the military. She looked around the room she was stuck in, trying to find any useful information about her whereabouts. She did wake up only a few minutes ago, finding herself in a dark room lit up by a single headlight and strapped tightly to a chair. This happened so many times now that she used to the scenario she was placed in. She could practically predict the next step in this situation.

There was a knock on the door, making the two guards standing behind turn. She almost didn't catch one of them spin on their heels to go dashing for the door, the mere turn of his head probably giving him whiplash. She craned her neck to try and see what was going, spotting a figure stepping through a door and few others following after. She resisted a groan, not wanting to go through this process for the seventh million time. "You're awake... that's good."

"Can't question a dead body can you?" She asked, sarcasm dripping off her tongue as she spoke. Yet in retaliation one of the guard's hands dropped to his side, revealing a holster with a handgun perched inside behind his blazer. A normal person's blood would have ran cold at the sight of the silver weapon, but she wasn't so surprised anymore. Only a frown grew on her face as she turned to lead figure in front of her. "Ah... I guess this means we can't just sit here and chit chat huh?"

The man in front of her gave her a sickening smile, commanding his guard to keep his hands away from the weapon. "I see you are used to this situation by now. You are awfully unfazed by the odds that are against you at the moment." He acknowledged, checking his nails as he did so. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly half paying attention to his words and half plotting her escape out of her temporary prison.

"There's always odds stacked against me," She joked, a gleaming smile on her face. "That doesn't mean I can't find a way out of it." Her eyes dropped to a brooch on each of the guards suits, trying to make out what they were. The brooch must mean something if every guard in the room was wearing one... everyone but the big bad himself in front of her. "Lets get on with the show, right? You want something from me, otherwise I would have been dead by now."

"I want information. Information on the head of the Seo Faction. I want to know everything about that man and his sickening gang of misfits," The man demanded, grabbing her by the cheeks and forcing to look at him. She inwardly vomited, wishing she could snatch her head away or shove him to the side. His hands felt icy cold, yet icky to the touch like he was going to do something... rather unpleasant. Isn't this borderline harassment if you exclude the whole kidnapping part? "Tell me everything I desire to know. Failure to comply will result in unwanted consequences."

The man let go and nodded to one of the guards, who stepped up obediently with a weapon in hand. She rolled her eyes as the muzzle of a gun was pressed up against temple, giving the man annoyed look. "Like I'd ever willingly give you that information. You kidnapped and I don't even know who you are." She countered, hearing the trigger click on pistol as it was pulled back. "I'm serious! I woke up just a few minutes ago! Can't shoot me for being curious..."

"So cocky yet so slow on the uptake?" He chided, having her shrug in response. An unnerving grin slowly began to form on his face as he pulled something from his pocket, revealing a brooch that all the other men in the room were wearing. The shiny brooch has a skull engraved on it, surrounded in crimson red flowers the color of blood. Her mouth gaped open and a forgiving smile slowly grew on her face. "You understand the severeness of this situation now... yes? Now give me my information or die at the hands of the Kim Faction."

The trigger of a gun sounded through the room, making the man in front of her stiffen up at the cold metal placed at the back of his head. The men all reacted accordingly, but were clearly on different sides. Each were held at gunpoint, pointing their weapons at each other due to their sudden betrayal of each other. She whistled at the sight, making eye contact with the petrified man in front of her. "Who are you? The Underboss? You're a little too... flaky for such a high position you know. Someone must be in training to take your position."

"You wrench." He spat, as if he wasn't surrounded by people who wouldn't hesitate to put a billet through his head. Everyone's eyes slowly turned towards the man, staring at him as if he had just made the gravest mistake possible. "Whatever you're planning, it isn't going to work. You're on my turf now, I'll have you know. Your attempts of success will be futile here!" He yelled, an ugly and old cackle escaping his mouth at his realization.

She blinked a couple times at his statement, his worst slowly registering in her head. "Who said we were ever in your turf exactly?" She questioned, batting her eyes ever so innocently at him. It was like she could see through him as if her eyes were an x-ray, watching as the man's blood suddenly ran cold with every second it took to process this new information. He looked down at her with wide and unforgiving eyes, his mouth opened in shock yet no words coming out. "You do notice that some of your men have turned on you right? So that must be a clue that you're not where you belong."

The man hissed out a curse, echoing through the room as the lights suddenly switched off. In the dead of the darkness were flashes of sparkles from gunshots, blasting deafeningly loud in everyone's ears. If any other words were exchanged during combat, it was all completely drained out. By the time the lights came back on, there was a clear indication of who came out on top. Most of the skull brooch wearing guards were on the ground, a red liquid oozes out from under them and staining their clothing.

"That got ugly, huh?" She mumbled, feeling something drip down her cheek slowly. It seemed like someone had shot in her direction, skimming her cheek with a bulldog and just barely missing her head. Now she had a fresh scar that she'd have to deal with. So much for attempting to have flawless skin, right? As her allied freed her, she took a look at the scene laid before her more clearly. She didn't know whether or not she wanted to try and clean up the mess that had been made or just leave it to the authorities to figure out... that is if they find this place.

"We didn't kill them," One of her allies informed her, nudging one of the deceased men with his foot. After bit of prodding, he glanced up at the girl with a smile as he spoke. "They ended up shooting at themselves. Cutting out the lights gave us enough of a diversion to turn them against themselves. Who would have known?" He exclaimed, the only one in the room with friendly aura radiating off of him. The others gave him a slightly annoyed glance, unable to match his awfully large enthusiasm.

She glanced around the room while stretching her arms and legs, trying to get rid of the stiffness in her limbs. "That's not the biggest part of my worries. That man was from the Kim Faction, didn't you hear? It seems like the rival gang is up to no good again and trying to get us involved in their mess." She explained, her eyes darting from body to body at the disaster laid before her. "Unfortunately he seemed to have gotten away in the chaos of the darkness. I don't want him roaming around this close to us..."

"He's definitely injured." The boy pointed out, his eyes traveling the track of blood left behind, earning a skeptical glance from the girl. A huge smile grew on his face as he walked towards the exit, carefully stepping over the deceased so that he didn't ruin the crime scene. "The underboss will probably send someone after him. He won't be killed. That's totally against the rules. We'll just... roughen him up?" He batting his eyes innocently at her, trying to get the slightest bit of sympathy from her.

"Wooyoung," She turned to him, earning sparkling eyes and a shining smile from the boy leading her out the room. "You're going to do exactly what you're not supposed to do, aren't you?" The boy opened his mouth to retaliate, to save himself from such assumptions. Yet no matter how hard he tried, no words decided to escape his mouth. She snorted as she pushed him through the doorway,"I love you and all, but you're an idiot."

Wooyoung rolled his eyes as he stumbled through the door. "There's only so much you can do when you're prohibited from killing unless seriously necessary. I'd like to think this was a seriously necessary situation since you were kidnapped, but you'd probably punch me in the gut if I had done anything." She smiled at him, because he's exactly right that's exactly what she would have done.

"Shut up and take me home, stupid." She spoke, pushing him through the doorway. "I don't want to be here when the Kim Faction figures out what we've done. Plus, I have a curfew to attend to and I am very much so past that said curfew." Wooyoung sneered at her, the mere thought of her with a curfew despite being in a gang made him laugh. It wasn't her fault that she still wanted to live a semi normal life... even if that did involve running back home after a serious fight.

* * *

The door to the manor slowly creeped open, echoing through the empty room of the building she was entering. She cursed under her breath for arriving so late, but that kinda happens when you're returning from getting kidnapped and all. Even though this was a common occurrence for her, she still want to face the wrath of an angry parent. Long lectures and the possibility getting grounded even though that's? Basically impossible for her? But her parents always make a way to give her a punishment one way or another.

"What are you doing?" A voice spoke, whispering in her ear and sending shivers down her spine. Despite not being one to be frightened so easily, she couldn't help but let out a screech of shock. Tumbling forward to get away from whatever was so dangerously close to her. The culprit let out a giggle, unable to control his laughter. "Oh no? Is the big bad Mari going to hurt me? Ah I'm so scared, help me~!" He mocked, but barely dodging the girl's fist. 

"Are you insane?!" She hissed, desperately trying to make Wooyoung quiet down. It's like he wanted her to get trouble! Though her attempts to get him to lower his voice weren't working, as the naturally loud boy only amplified the amount of giggling and laughing he was doing. It seriously didn't make sense to her. Wooyoung could be so silent and vicious in certain situations, but here he was waking up everyone he could with his boombox like voice. Where was his off switch? What plug did she need to pull to make him stop?

She covered the boys mouth with her hands, frowning at him before letting out a deep sigh. "Is this payback for calling you an idiot back at the mission?" Mari asked him. Wooyoung simply shrugged, not giving her a definite answer. She resisted letting out a deep sigh, not wanting to alert anyone else in the house if her friend already hadn't. "Why aren't you at home anyways? You came all the way out here just to mess with me or something."

He removed her hands off his mouth, smiling at her with twinkling eyes. "I have to report back to the Boss. I can't really do that from the comfort of my home can I?" Wooyoung asked her before dropping her hands, walking ahead of her with a bounce in his step. Mari blinked a few times before processing what he said, realizing what he meant only a few seconds after. "Which way was his study again? I can't remember... I've been here countless times and yet I always let this slip my mind..."

"Why can't you do that in the morning?" She asked him, pushing him away from the stairs he was approaching. "I mean, it's really late a night you know? He's probably... fast asleep with his wife! Dreaming dreams of money and power, you sure we wanna mess with when he's in a state of peacefulness?" Mari told him, coming up with something off the top of her head. Wooyoung couldn't help but snort at the girl's antics as he swiftly slipped past her. She wiped her head around to see the boy waving to her as he spoke.

"Ah yes, he probably is fast asleep. And yet here his daughter is, wide awake and past curfew." He disappeared up the stairs, basically running towards the study. Mari hissed at him to stop, chasing after him in a desperate attempt to stop him. He only giggling in response to her actions, practically daring her to try and stop him. She threw herself at him, grabbing his shirt and dragging him down with her. The two let a screech as they collapsed to the ground, making a loud thud in the process.

Mari cursed under her breath, getting onto her knees and reaching for Wooyoung's hair. "You sly fox!" She began, ruffling his hair with an annoyed smile. "Why are you trying to get me in trouble, huh? You think its funny to watch me get chewed out?" The boy giggled as she ran her fingers through his hair, creating a huge bird nest on top of his head. "I thought we were friends! Friends don't do that too each other!"

"I was playing, I swear!" Wooyoung exclaimed, grabbing her wrist and pulling her hands away from him. Before the two could attack each other once more, footsteps could be heard treading down the hallway. Mari's head snapped to attention, staring down the corridor with an anxious expression. It seems as though she's made a small mistake, becoming the loud one of the duo instead of Wooyoung. "What's wrong?" He asked as the two scrambled off the ground.

She brushed herself as she stood up, her mind trying to decide if she wanted to run or if she wanted to stay. "It seems like the Boss isn't fast asleep anymore," Mari commented, giving him an anxious smile. "And his daughter isn't in her room asleep either. I'm going to get my ass kicked."


	2. Understanding

The boss sat patiently in his chair, staring at the two teens in front of him. His eyes were full of unknown emotions and an intent to get the information he desired, but neither of them spoke. They weren't prepared to answer his questions? They didn't have any good excuses to save themselves. The two teens were flying by the seat of their pants, the most unpredictable and unsafe idea to do when being faced by a mob boss. The man in front of them cleared his throat, sitting up in his chair as he suddenly began to speak, "Who would like to explain what happened first?"

Mari didn't even get a chance to discuss a course of action with the boy next to her. "The mission took a little bit longer than we thought it would be," Wooyoung explained, all the blissful and joking emotions in his voice from earlier gone. It was replaced with a rock hard tone, icy cold and refusing to show any weakness. Scary how quick he could switch between those two defining traits of his. "We didn't think that the Kim Faction would send their own Underboss to complete the task. Things simply got complicated, that's why we exceeded the curfew."

"Now tell me, Wooyoung," the boss began, leaning as closely to the boy as his desk will allow. Mari searched for some sort of flinch or nervous tick to occur, that's always what happens when being confronted by him. And yet he stood in place like a statue, as if he wasn't facing the human incarnation of misfortune and power itself. "Exactly when did those things get complicated? Was it when you arrived at your given location and no one was there to greet you? Was it when you noticed something was wrong when our associate didn't hand us what we wanted?"

Her skin crawled as reason upon reason began to pile up on top of each other. She knew exactly where this statement was going and didn't want her own faults being blamed on someone who can't control her actions. "Or was it when you let that traitorous associate take advantage of what should have been limited and unknown knowledge, and take my own daughter hostage by the enemy!" He yelled, slamming his hands down on the desk out of pure frustration. Their boss isn't like this, he's not as hot headed as he seems at the moment.

Usually he's calm and collected, analyzing the situation before beginning a confrontation. But the boss was blinded that anger that this she was almost kidnapped and killed to begin with. While Mari let's many things slide due to the respect and love she has for him as a father, she wasn't going to let him take out his anger on Wooyoung. Not when he knew so much about him that could hurt her friend. "Does that really matter? Right now?" She questioned, intruding before it was her time to speak.

"The associate who knew about our connection is dead." Mari pointed out, a frown slowly growing on her face at the mere thought of it. "I learned that Wooyoung killed him as soon as he had the chance, he had no choice but to do so. The members of the Seo Faction that heard what the associate said are sworn to secrecy. You don't have to worry about that ever escaping your grasps. Plus! The Underboss of the Kim Faction has been caught. San is just waiting on your next orders in what to do with him. See? Nothing to get mad over." 

"That's not why he's mad," Wooyoung commented, but appreciated the effort to clear the skies for him. Mari gave him a questionable look, glancing from her friend to her father quickly. "He's mad I even let you get kidnapped in the first place. It is my job to make sure you don't end up dead after all. And I... kinda failed." Oh right, that's technically Wooyoung's job, to protect her. Though she didn't need the extra protection from her close friend, her father wanted to make sure nothing happened. 

From the first time Wooyoung and Mari met to when he officially joined the illegal organization, he had always been a sort of bodyguard towards her. He wasn't aggressive with it, in fact she was more of a bodyguard for him than anything else. Yet whenever she went out on "jobs" or anywhere in public, he was supposed to be right there with her. For if anything happened to Mari, they'd have to go through him first. Which is a pretty hard feat to even achieve. His appearance gives off a totally different vibe from his ice cold personality when there is business to attend to.

Of course, the boss had assigned him this roll when they were young and unable to take matters into their own hands. As they got older, their thoughts on the matter weakened and their need to uphold their jobs became lax. They simply became closer friends and more competent people who could protect themselves, Mari be lying if she said she didn't forget what Wooyoung's original position was supposed to be. A bodyguard, a human shield to be thrown into harm's way without a second question.

Even her own parents had somewhat forgotten this job of his, sending him off as a simple soldier on his own missions. It just seems as though this one incident had brought back up the responsibilities they neglected. "That's... not fair." Mari criticized, resisting the evil eye she wanted to give her father so badly. "You can't blame Wooyoung for what happened just because he's supposed to security or something. I'm eighteen! I'm legally an adult at this point, I can be held accountable for my own actions. That was my fault!"

"You're not an adult as long as you're under my roof." The boss growled, making Mari flinch at his harsh tone. She should have expected that to happen, she was catching an attitude with him after all. It's clear to see that the girl wasn't used to not having things go her way. "Wooyoung as a job to fulfill and we've neglected its existence. As long as he works under me I must hold him to his decisions and failures."

His full attention was on her now. She could tell he was conflicted between being soft on her or treating her just as any other soldier that's been taken under his wing. "No matter how fond of him you and I may be, this organization holds no room for failure. And he failed. Do you understand, Mari?" He asked her, his voice as commanding an owner to its dog. She couldn't help but find herself nodding reluctantly and taking a backseat for the rest of the conversation.

* * *

She fell face first into her bed, resisting a childlike scream that wanted to escape her mouth. Wooyoung fell back into the bed with her, collapsing into the soft comforters with a small huff. "You know he's right. We totally forgot I was supposed to protect you no matter what and I didn't do that. Sure you got out with a single scratch but it doesn't cover up the fact that I messed up." He told her, wanting her to understand why her father was being so harsh. Mari's head snapped up almost immediately, a scornful frown slowly growing on her lips. The boy beside her took a hint, politely crossing his legs on her bed as she sat up.

"It just doesn't make any sense, you know?" She questioned him, trying to figure out the logic in her father's thinking. "I mean, why do I have a curfew in the first place? I turned like eighteen months ago! Technically I'm an adult by society's standards, aren't I? It's time he started treating me like one and that was one of the times he should have!" Mari looked up to Wooyoung with pleading eyes, practically begging him to agree with her. "I was stupid not to suspect that something was suspicious was going on, and I let my guard down because this was a trusted associate. See? Those are errors that I made! Not a you problem."

Yet he only sighed as he let the words escape out of his mouth,"First of all, you're still in high school. Until you get out of there and get to some sort of university, you're not an adult. You're a child." He explained, ruffling up the already messy hair on her head. "Plus if he did start treating you like an adult, you'd be like the rest of us. Soldiers with no other usage than to follow his orders and getting scolded harsher than you've ever experienced. That doesn't sound fun, does it?"

"He doesn't treat you all badly." Mari countered, rolling her eyes at the statement he made. "He just cares a lot. And he's tough because he knows how badly this whole mafia family thing can crash if anything terrible happens. But I just don't think it was fair to you of all people. I've known you since like... we were kids. You should have some sort of special benefit!" As soon as her eyes landed right back on Wooyoung, a sneer was present on his face. "What?" She questioned,"What'd I do now, huh Woo?"

"You're a hypocrite! Jesus you say you're an adult but you're so stupid sometimes." He laughed, unable to hold it in. Mari frowned as she resisted the urge to shove him off her bed. "What I really mean is that what you said about the boss is exactly what he's doing for you. Just... switched around a little bit. You're his literal daughter you know, you've got the special benefit of not needing to be held accountable for things." Wooyoung told her as soon as he could shoo his giggling away.

"Well what if I don't want any special benefits? What if I want to be treated like everyone else instead of some sort of... princess." The word had a bitter taste in her tongue, wanting to make her double over in disgust. Mari never wanted to be seen higher than anyone just because of who her father is, which is part of the reason she truly got head deep into the mafia business with her family. She wanted to be experience struggle and fortune like a normal person. Yet clearly it seems like some things just can't be changed because of who you're born as.

Wooyoung sat in silence, thinking of someway to give her the confirmation she needed. "Well... you've got school?" He tried to reassure her, snapping his fingers when he got the thought. A smile grew on his face as he began to blindly blabber on. "Yeah, yeah! Everyone is treated the exact same at school! Sure it's a private school but they sure do act like public school teachers, they don't care about anyone at all!" She finally took her chance and shoved the boy off her bed, hearing a loud thud not long after. 

"Stop trying to be goofy, I'm serious!" Mari snorted, unable to get rid of the grin on her face. Wooyoung winced at the pain on his back, groaning as he lifted himself right back off the ground. She tried to force her smile off her face, rubbing her cheeks in a desperate attempt to make them fall. "I need to think of a way to get my father to understand that I'm not some little girl in need of protection and benefits. I can do this stuff all on my own!"

"I'm not the right person to come to for this type of stuff," The boy confessed, shrugging his shoulders. "But... we could ask Yeosang." Her eyes were practically gleaming with mischief at the mention of the boy's name. Kang Yeosang was his full name, the son of her father's consigliere. Not only was this boy the son of the very trusted advisor in the Seo Faction, but he is to be become one once his father is too old to work or dies like everyone else. That meant that once the underboss of their faction or Mari stepped up to the plate, he'd be their advisor. 

However, right now he's simply a child. Older than the two, yes, but a child. If they played their cards right they'd get Yeosang to help Mari's situation. Good advice must come from an advisor right? "You're exactly right." She gasped, thinking of all the perfect scenarios that could happen when they went to see the boy. He lived on the estate the boss's manor is, just in a totally different building. "Tomorrow morning, let's go see Yeosang. Nothing's going to stop us, you hear me? Nothing."


	3. Become the Norm

Mari struggled to keep up, which is unlikely for a person like her. Sure she was smart, a little hot headed at times, even a bit cocky when she was doing things she excelled in. But school? Homework, classwork, exams, and even more? It made her feel like a deer in headlights and left her head spinning in confusion. Her skill with a weapon and persuasion was no match for the adults who stood high above her despite the opposite being the case.

She sat in the back of the classroom, eyes darting from the notebook in his hands to the board the teacher was using. With very word the teacher wrote, she was a sentence behind everyone else. With every question the teacher answered, she had another one bubbling instead her head just waiting to be answered. Yet when the time came for help, not a word escaped her mouth. She wasn't scared, Mari had bigger things to be afraid of knowing how her life went. She just felt shackled to the ground, unable to reach out and reserve the answers she deserved.

It was weird since this had never happened in the years before now. Perhaps this was reality coming to hit her with its hardest bat, alerting her that things were never going to stay the same. She didn't have the same fate as the rest of her peers, clueless of the things she's lived through. University was an option, yes, but dropping off the radar was placed above it. Mari couldn't be doing college essays left and right while she was dirtying her hands with sins not even her counselor could imagine.

"Mari?" The girl almost slammed her pencil down, resisting a scream that tried to escape her mouth. She was already awfully distracted by her own life, she didn't need another one. Yet she had to drop the ice cold glare in her eyes, noticing the instructor staring at her expectantly. "I need to talk to you in private. Do you mind stepping out the class and wait by the door for me?" She nodded reluctantly and stood up, trekking towards the door with a huff. Great, this was going to be an even farther setback than the one she was already in.

Mari was already in a bag mood as is. She had missed the entire day yesterday due to her being on a mission with Wooyoung till midnight. She had intentionally skipped her classes for it, after all it was more exiting than staring at the white walls of her classrooms. Not only that, but she had missed her chance to speak to Kang Yeosang this morning at the same time. Because of her detour with Wooyoung to the Kang Manor, it caused her to be late to her socially accepted prison.

Despite the Kang Manor not being very far from her own, he wasn't there when the two had arrived. In fact, no one was there when they had arrived. The building was completely abandoned by the people who lived in it, yet they could tell they had been there that morning. Come to find that Yeosang and his father had left early to accompany the Underboss in a transaction. It was an important one with the Nakamoto Yakuza, an associate and ally of the Seo Faction. They wouldn't be back for some time now, probably not till Mari and Wooyoung had returned back till the manor.

But that was too long of a wait for her, she'd be stuck at her school for hours. Who knew what Yeosang would do while she wasn't there, probably disappear into the shadows to not be seen until the next week. He was so silent, she had almost never heard a peep from him. If the consigliere's son really did want to leave without anyone knowing, he'd be extremely successful at doing so. That's not at all what Mari needed at this point.

She let out a deep sigh as she stepped out of the class, closing the door behind her and sliding onto the ground. Is dropping out an option now? Sure it was her last year but anything was better than being a high school senior. "Don't stress out, don't stress out..." Mari mumbled, trying her best to collect yourself before anyone tried to interact with her. It's funny really, how her personality switched as soon as she was out of her element. 

"Crazy how you're more comfortable with a gun than you are with a pencil." Her head snapped up suddenly when a voice started talking to her out of nowhere. In front of her stood the sly cat she called a friend, his catlike grin shining down on her like the sun. "I'll be more scared of you once you finally learn how to use a pencil correctly, you'll be even more of a threat than you already are." Mari rolled her eyes at him, holding out her hands for him to take.

"Oh shut up, San," the black haired boy's smile grew even larger, mischief resembling that of Wooyoung's. The two were close after all. They were not as close as she was to the boy, but San was a good second. They hung out so much that at one point it feels as though you can feel the other even if without the other. He grabbed her hand and pulled her off the ground, helping her up and standing back up again. Despite her (almost) mental breakdown, San's mere presence made her forget all about it.

San wasn't anyone of high status, though he was apart of the Seo Faction. He was simply a soldier who Mari had befriended, a soldier who was sworn to the faction since birth. She hadn't told him she was related to the Boss, seeing as she didn't know exactly how'd he react. She was lucky that he wasn't on the first mission when the associate had exposed her. Mari's worst fear was that San would stop acting normal around her, all the playful jokes and goofy smiles he flashed would be replaced with something she didn't want. 

"Seriously though, are you okay? Yesterday's incident didn't leave any... bitter taste, did it?" He questioned, whispering the words to her just in case someone decided to eavesdrop. Teenagers don't know how to mind their own business you know? "Wooyoung said he was going to check on you before he sent me after the Kim Faction's Underboss. I didn't get an update from him because he refuses to pick up his phone." San has tried to hiss the last part to himself, but Mari caught it either way.

She couldn't help but laugh at him, crossing her arms as she leaned up against the door. "That stuff happens all the time! I'm practically used to it." The sentence came out a little bit too casual than it should have been, but what else could she say? She truly did experience kidnapping a lot due to her looking innocent at first glance. Of course, her captor's always regretted choosing her as their victim. Mari never took anything seriously! She could be on the verge of death and still spit out something sarcastic.

"Be careful at least," San told her, eyes darting around the hallway. "Their Underboss has been killed. This is the first time in years since the Seo Faction has ever made a violent advancement on them. Anyone and everyone who has ever been apart of the faction will be under their radar." He warned her. Mari frowned at this words as she listened to his warning. So her father did order them to take out the Underboss, but what else could they do? They only took lives when they were told to or were in a situation where they had no other choice.

The Kim Underboss knew too much, so the deed had to be done. It only made her wonder who had took the finishing blow. She could safely assume it was San, as he was there with the group who had apprehended the enemy. But what if it was Wooyoung who had done it? Mari's views on her friend wouldn't change, of course, she could not easily be swayed by events like that. That didn't mean she would feel some type of way about it... even if the Underboss did throw some words he shouldn't have at her. "They won't even hear a peep from me."

Just as she spoke, the door flew open. Mari stumbled back as her support had been taken away from her in a matter of seconds. She turned around to see her teacher standing there with a look of confusion and anger on her face at the mere sight of San. The boy grinned awkwardly as he waved at the girl, his eyes darted between the teacher and student. "I'll see you later, okay?" He asked her before quickly dashing off while he still could.

Just before Mari could respond, her teacher chimed in. "There won't be a next time, not if you keep up what you're doing now," the adult spoke, closing the door behind her and crossing her arms. "Listen, Seo, are you okay? I feel like something is going on behind the scenes and you're not telling anyone. Whatever it is, it's affecting your schoolwork" Was she that transparent? She thought she was pretty hard to read, seeing as she was living a very intense double life. 

"I'm sorry?" Mari answered, though the confusion was very present in her voice. How else was she supposed to respond to that question. "I don't understand, what do you mean something going on behind the scenes? I'm totally fine." Her responses were only half true, as her home life was completely fine. It was just the fact that she was forced to go to the social accepted prison instead of doing something that could put her true skills to work. But her simple chemistry doesn't have to know that.

"You can't try and pretend, Seo." Her teacher argued, eyes glanced towards the door to the classroom and going back to her. "You're struggling in class, I can tell you are. You have to let me know what's happening so that I can help you. You already miss days consecutively, and it's becoming a genuine problem. I had to issue a detention because of all of your absences!" She revealed, making Mari do an internal double take at her words. She did a what now?

Detention? She meant in school detention, right? Not after school detention. Mari could probably deal with every other punishment the school had to offer, actually she begged for any other punishment they could give her! But after school detention would kill her, as that's the only time she could even go on missions if she wasn't already sent out on one earlier in the week. "You're... joking right? Tell me you're joking," Mari pleaded, not wanting to be held from the only thing she, in her opinion, was good at. "I can't be in detention, there's no way! For every absence I've had, I've always had a valid excuse."

"Yes, but those absences in general are building on top of each other," Her teacher explained to her, trying to get her to see her side of things. "You've has an excuse for every absence, but it's happened so many times that the school is forced to punish you. Not only that but your grades are dropping like flies, Seo, mainly because you're never hear to learn the material I'm supposed to provide for you. If your grades get even lower than what they already are, the school will be forced to kick you out."

"That's not fair!" Mari fumed, closing her cool as the conversation progressed. "Can't you give me a break? I've got a lot of things going through my mind right now, you know? I've got things outside of school that I've got to to maintain in my own. I'm eighteen, I'm just a teenager!" Her hands flew over her mouth as soon as the words came out of her, cursing inwardly. It's crazy how quickly she was to contradict the words she had said just yesterday night about how she wanted to be treated as an adult.

Her wish came true at her own school, and she had rejected just as much. Can't she just make up her mind on what she wanted? "I'm sorry, but this is a very prestigious school. There's a reason we're a private school after all. Your presence will damage the school's reputation for sure, and that's not something we can really tolerate here. Now you will take your after school detention tomorrow without complaints. Do you hear me, young woman?"

She couldn't help but wish she was in the Kim Faction at the moment. They had the ability to do anything and everything to those who crossed them. Yet, she was born into the much nicer Seo Faction, so what could she do. Mari simply took a deep breath and let a grumble, sounding too close to a grunt of displeasure. "Yes, ma'am." She could only hope that she could use the mafia daughter benefits she had without a guilty pit in her chest.

"Go to the administration office," her teacher instructed, shooing her off as quickly as she possibly could. "They told us to send our students who need forms to be signed by their parents for detention there. I trust that you won't do anything bad while I send you off. You're a good kid, but just need to experience the consequences of your actions. It's clear you don't really care about how you're influencing not only yourself but those around you." Mari almost scoffed at the woman's words, who did she think she was?


	4. Beginning of the End

_Mari turned the corner of the hallway, slipping inside of the administration office without anyone noticing her. Though she cursed at herself for being subconsciously cautious of what was around her, nothing at the school could truly hurt. What bad could really happen? Someone started bullying her? She was raised too well to let anyone so weak try to take advantage of her. She just had to learn when she could turn her little habits on and off._

_In the office, everyone was at work. There was a man typing away at the front desk, glancing up every so often to make sure he wasn't ignoring anyone. Behind him was a duo gossiping about their students, sharing what seemed like grades and judging them based on what a computer thought of them. Every so often a teacher would pass by the door near the back, papers in hand and dashing back to their classroom as fast as they could. The administration office was much more busy than she originally thought it was._

_The adult at the front desk took a double take at Mari, almost shocked a student was in the office. He stopped all the work he was doing and pushed his revolving chair over to her. "Well isn't this a sight for sore eyes." He spoke, leaning up against the desk to face her. "I haven't seen a student genuinely come in here to not beg for answers to an exam in quite a few months now! You aren't in here for that... right?" The man questioned her, his eyes wide and innocent as he forced an answer out of her._

_"Right... I'm here for a detention form." She told him and he nodded vigorously. He pushed himself in the revolving chair as he searched the drawers for the papers, frowning as he looked around. Mari watched as he rolled around the front office frantically in search of the papers he was supposed to be keeping track of. It seemed like he had lost them, and that meant Mari would probably be free to go. "Oh, if you can't find them, then that's okay. I was given detention for a really unfair reason anyways," She spoke, trying to ease him on to her side with a lie._

_The man looked up curiously, the look in his eyes presenting her the need to know more. Mari smiled innocently at him as she rested her head in her hands. "My teacher is truly mean... she's isolating me out from everyone else and treating me worse than the others. All because I can't do the work as fast as everyone else. She gave me detention because of it! I have proof!" She was lying straight through her teeth, but the man was taking it as truth. Why would a young girl lie about being bullied by her teacher anyways?_

_"Seo Mari?" She turned around at the mentioning of her name, the slick smile on her face slowly dropping at the sight behind her. Walking through the glass doors was a man in a suit, adjusting the cuffs of his blazer and discarding the burnt out cigarette into the trash. The teachers who spotted the action scowled, getting ready to scold him on how he shouldn't be smoking and bring such objects around the students. He shrugged them off though, ambling towards her as he oozed with confidence._

_Behind him was a boy she almost didn't notice, he hadn't made a noise since he had entered the office. His eyes could turn someone to stone as if he was Medusa, scanning the room for his next room. He swayed on his heels, his hands deep in his pockets with a gold chain dangling above his black shirt. He side eyed Mari as she spotted the sight of a compass tattoo on his neck. She knew exactly who it was once she saw his stone cold eyes and the red birthmark on his cheek. Kang Yeosang, son of the Seo Faction's Consigliere._

_What the hell was he doing here? What the hell were both of them doing at her school! "Your father asked us to take you home. He has something... to discuss with you." The Consigliere spoke, very cautious of the words coming out of his mouth. Clearly he was trying to alert her that they were taking her back for a mission she needed to tend to, but why now? She was in the middle of a school day, leaving right now would make her even more behind than she actually was. Plus, she thought her father had agreed to not take her on missions while she was trying to be a good student._

_And that's exactly how she ended up in the back of a Rolls-Royce, staring out the window at the scenery flying past them. Unfortunately the consigliere gave her no time to try and retrieve San from his class to come with her. She didn't even get the chance to call Wooyoung about her whereabouts. The two were usually the ones who took her home, walking with her as far as they could on foot before they had to take San to his place first. He knew nothing about her relation to the boss, so he couldn't take her all the way there like Wooyoung could._

So she was stuck in the backseat, sitting next to Yeosang with a nervous fidget. There was a glass window separating the two from the driver and the Consigliere, concealing any sound that might come from the other sides. Mari had wanted to talk to the boy earlier, yes, but not like this. She wanted Wooyoung for back up, to hype her up and get her to talk to the silent son beside her. Yet without her energizer, she didn't even know if she could look at him.

Sure, she knew who he was and all, but that was it. Mari had seen him at a few times at parties that she was forced to go to with her parents, but have never made conversation with him. Why would she when she has Wooyoung with her all the fine. "So, detention, huh?" He suddenly spoke, his eyes in the paper that his father was holding. She inwardly groaned at the sight. How could he have time to take such an insignificant form and not let her call her friends. "I didn't think you were the type to get in trouble to what I had heard and saw." 

"I have a rude teacher," She mumbled in response, glancing over at the boy next to her. Yeosang nodded after her answer, fiddling with the chain that hung down his neck. No more words from him then? Or was he waiting for her to explain exactly what happened? He was supposed to become a consigliere once his father resigned (or worse), she'd have to explain her worries and problems to him at one point. "... and the fact that being absent from class is causing my grades to drop and making my attendance look like trash. It's supposed to my punishment for leaving so much of whatever."

He nodded once more, relaxing a bit more now that they were formally speaking to each other. "It's not your fault, you're living a double life. You've gotta keep up with one of them better than the other. You can always use the other side to affect your life in school, you know." Yeosang shrugged, implying for her to use her father's power as the godfather to get her teachers off her back. She rolled her eyes at his secret suggestion, knowing that's not how she wanted to proceed with things.

"I felt compelled to do that earlier, I'm not going to lie," She told him, sending a sharp glare towards him for a few seconds. "However, unlike you who lives lavishly in the obsolete path you've chosen, I want to be somewhat normal. If I have to get through life without using whatever special benefits I have to get there, I will." Mari couldn't help but hiss the words at him, glad that the glass between her and his father was keeping them apart. Who knew how the consigliere would act if he heard the words she was saying to his son.

Though he chuckled, Yeosang chuckled at her words. "You're funny, you know." Confusion played on her face at his statement, not understanding what he meant. Who knew what was going through that boy's head to be honest. A sudden smile played on his face as he rested his head on the window, holding the chain on his neck tightly in his grasp. "Wooyoung told me you came looking for me earlier today. Of course, as you can tell, the yakuza doesn't wait for anyone. He said you wanted me to help you with something?"

Mari blinked a few times as she let his words sink in. "That boy," she laughed, sitting back in the seat with a smile on his face. The kid didn't go to school, completely dropped out after his first semester of high school as a freshman. Of course he'd go find Yeosang for himself, he didn't have anything else to do if he was free for the day. "He's right. Since you're going to be my consigliere one day, I need your advise. Like literally advise, it's about my father and his rules. You ready to help?"

"I'm all ears," Yeosang responded, leaning over the armrest to make sure he gets all the details. Before she could even say anything, the door to the car suddenly opened up. The two turned to see the Consigliere standing their with an expectant look on his face, mentally urging them out of the car. "Right," He said, unbuckling his seatbelt and slipping out of the car almost immediately. Mari followed after, almost tumbling out due to her carelessness. 

She stood up almost immediately, dusting herself off as quickly as she could as she rounded back to the two men. The driver closed the door behind her while the Consigliere handed her the paper in his hands. "Give this to your mother," He stayed specifically, causing her to groan in frustration. "This detention puts a halt to our plans tomorrow, I need to know what your mother would like to do about it." She nodded her head in response, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at his words.

Of course he'd ask her to hand it over to her mother, she cared more about her school life than her father did. Anything school related cake up to her, she'd make sure that Mari did as the school asked. They were paying a lot for the private school they were sending her to and her mother wanted her to maintain a somewhat normal school life given her situation. She could only hope that the woman wasn't here and she could just hand it off to her father. He'd probably discard of it faster than he could a Kim Faction member. 

"Come by at some point with Wooyoung," Yeosang whispered to her, making sure his father couldn't hear him. "I'll help you when you have time, alright?" She gave him a quick thumbs up, scrambling away from the Consigliere and his son. She could feel the man's eyes burning into her skull as if he could tell she was plotting something behind her father's back. Clearly he didn't want his son to be involved in any of her antics either, but what could he do about it? Teenagers like to team up to get their way. 

Once she has entered the manor, she was greeted by those grand stairs of hers that she had chased Wooyoung on. She could hear the faint noise of a conversation between two adults, which was pretty loud if she could hear them from the door. Mari huffed as she closed the door behind her, knowing that her parents were probably together. "This detention thing is seeming more unavoidable the closer I get to them." She mumbled, slowly walking up the stairs to try and delay her pending doom. 

Though it seemed to have caught up with her first. Out the hallway stepped her mother, turning around to repeat something back to whoever was speaking to her. Mari got ready to run the other way, trying her best to not tumble but still rush down the stairs. "Mari?" Her mother called her just as she got down the last step. She hissed curses under her breath as she slowly turned around, holding the paper behind her back in an attempt to hide it.

She weakly smiled as her mother came to running towards her, wrapping her in the warmest hug she's ever received. And that's saying a lot, Mari is friends with Wooyoung. "I didn't think I'd get to see you till tomorrow night! Why are you here so early?" Her mother asked her, stepping back a little bit before she suffocated her daughter to death. Of course her mother would be in and out of the house, just because she's married to a mafia man didn't mean she was going to avoid it. She worked as a dealer, traveling around the world in search of other underground organizations and associates to become allies with. 

"The consigliere and his son came by, almost revealed themselves as to who they were in the administration office," Mari said, rolling her eyes at the thought of what they did. "However, they said I was needed? So they brought me all the way here, didn't even let me tell San I was gone." She made her voice purposely dramatic, jokingly trying to get the Consigliere in trouble. Her mother laughed in response, turning to walk up the stairs and urging her to follow after.

"I see, I'll be sure to make sure the Consigliere never does it again." She reassured her before holding a folded piece of paper in the air. Mari blinked a couple of times at it, before realizing that the detention form wasn't in her hands. She opened her mouth to protest but her mother simply smiled as she opened it up, walking up the stairs carelessly as she read it. Of course she was going to find out somehow, it was probably the main reason her mother had hugged her in the first place. "What...? Is this...?"

She covered her face with her hands, turning away from her mother. "Detention... I've missed too many days, even if they're excused. So my teacher is punishing me to teach me a lesson on keeping up with my responsibilities as a senior. In this case it's... getting to school daily." Mari explained, lowering her hands from her face to give her mother an awkward smile. "But you're totally going to disregard that right? We've got more important things to do than pay attention to some silly detention!"

* * *

She hit her head on the desk, immediately jerking back in pain when she has realized what she had done. She was stuck in an almost empty classroom, kicking her legs furiously as she waited for time to pass. Her mother made her go to the detention, she had signed the form herself and everything. Her father wasn't very pleased with the outcome, wanting to send Mari on a mission that day. However, somehow his wife had convinced him otherwise, probably because he couldn't resist her please and caved into anything she wanted. 

They sent San in her place, a perfect substitute for the mission but still. He was out there doing his thing and she was stuck being watched by an old man who would scowl at every moment she made. The girl didn't even have any other students in the room with her, she was the only one there. Either they didn't care about school, got out of it thanks to their parents' persuasion, or her teacher truly gave her detention because she didn't like her. "Curse my mom for actually trying to make me experience a normal life." 

"Quiet!" The old man yelled from the back of the classroom. She turned around with an annoyed expression on her face, she wasn't even that loud. The man was just petty he had to stay after school to watch after her. Either that or he didn't like teenagers in general. He narrowed his eyes at her as he practically spat at her," What do you think you're doing? Turn around and stay that way! Kids these days don't know how to act."

"Okay! That's enough of that." She yelled, slamming her hands on the desk. It startled the man behind her, making him jump at her sudden movements. She glanced around the classroom, unable to spot any security cameras but knowing they were there. Did she want to even try anything at the expensive of being caught immediately? But then again, did she want to stay in this classroom for any longer? Didn't think so. "What happens if I leave out of here before my time is up?" She asked him, turning to face the old man watching her. 

His hands took as he held onto the desk, still nerved by her sudden aggression and movements. "Depends on the severity. If you leave now I'm almost sure you'll get suspended or an even longer time in detention. Perhaps in and after school detention?" He answered, judging her and her questions. Mari nodded as she listened to his words, debating on what to do next. Her eyes looked the man up and down, trying to determine how much energy he might have left in him for being an old man.

"That's enough for me!" She concluded before dashing towards the desk and snatching up the keys to the classroom the two were in. The man seat shocked at her sudden actions as she crashed info a few desks while trying to maneuver through them. The girl flew through the door like a bullet, taking a quick moment to regain her breath. The old man got out of his chair, trying to chase after her to bring her back but he didn't even get the chance. She stood up and grabbed the door handle, slamming it closed and keeping it there.

"Open this door right now!" The man yelled at her, hitting his fist on the door as hard as he could. She ignored him as she scrambled to get them right into the lock, twisting it and making sure it was closed for good. She stepped back with the keys in hand, watching him struggle to get the door open now that it was locked. "Open the door right now before I call security on you! This... is theft! And it's holding a person hostage!" He complained, pulling hard on the door in an attempt to free himself.

She laughed as she threw the keys down the hallway, pulling out her phone to take a picture of the situation he was in. "Sorry sir, I've got important things to do today. I'll see you next week, right? Enjoy your weekend! I hope it doesn't get cold in there!" Mari exclaimed as she slipped her phone into her back pocket and began sprinting down the hallway towards the nearest exit. The old man let out a furious hell as she made her getaway, only making her laugh even louder.

"Wait until Wooyoung and San hear about this," she grinned as she spotted double doors down the hallway she was running down. She was almost one hundred percent sure that when one of the teachers found out what she had done, they'd attempt to kick her out. Yet messing with someone who is in an underground criminal organization, the daughter of it nonetheless, would have everything working out in her favor for sure. 

She turned her back to the door, pushing it open without her hands as she took out her phone in a desperate attempt to contact Wooyoung. She was ready to get out there, go do something fun with those two friends of hers. Perhaps even go on a mission now that she was free for a few days. Better yet, she could go find Yeosang and finally have some sort of control over her life now. Mari skidded to a stop when she noticed something in front of her, almost crashing into it due to her not paying attention. 

She looked up from her phone to see three motorcycles parked in front of her, all three of them being black. Though one of them was lined with red in a few different places, like on its wheels and the brand logo. Mari had heard the deafening sound of motorcycles around her school before, but it never bothered her too much as to where it came from. But now she could see that they definitely belonged to some students that attended the same school as her, and was determined to find out who it was.

Mari dragged her hand across the red lined bike, picking up the helmet in search of the name. She didn't know if bikers put their names on their helmets, but it's worth checking, isn't it? She spotted a name on the outside, hidden by the black coloring of the gear and written in black sharpie no less. She raised her phone to the name, getting ready to flash a light on it to reveal the owner yet was caught off guard. A high pitched scream echoed from behind the school, making her face contort with confusion. "What the hell was that?"


	5. Wonderland

Mari held her breath as she pressed her back against the wall, not wanting anything to give her away. She had heard the high pitched scream two more times after the first, but it was silenced after the third. She listened carefully for anything else but nothing ever came. It was worrying, alarming even, how quiet the outdoors had gotten after the panicked shrieks had suddenly stopped. Curious by this sudden change in atmosphere, Mari felt an urge to began searching for clues to figure out what had happened. It was almost too quick and too swift for someone to stop screaming from fright just like that. 

So she had quite literally dropped everything to start her search. Ditching the helmet and her own phone to began her investigating. Mari's mind was too preoccupied with the many scenarios that played on repeat in her head. What could have happened? Why did it happen? And so awfully close to her school no less? She had already concluded that it had something to do with the biker students that (assumably) attended the school, who else could it be? It was too convenient for their motorcycles to be parked right outside the school and for a scream to come from around the back.

Though... what if it wasn't? What if her assumption was totally wrong? Mari feared that it might be the two clashing mafias she grew to know so well. That somehow, someway they were creeping into her sanctuary of normalcy. She could only imagine how much harder it would be for her to continue during the day as a student when the Kim Faction is so close to her. Yet it wouldn't be hard to believe that if it was them, she'd be transferred to another school completely in a desperate attempt to keep them away from her. 

Thinking about the Kim Faction gave her a headache, especially knowing how aggressive they are going to become now. The loss of a Underboss is a difficult one, after all. He's the cover up for the true leader, who is almost never revealed at all times. He has almost all the power in the hierarchy, calls all the shots and commands all the soldiers in their ranks. The Seo Faction has a Underboss as well, seeing as the true king of the faction has more important things to handle and a family of his own to protect. Truth be told, Mari isn't very close to the Underboss of her own faction. 

She shook her head violently, trying to shake herself out the trance she had put herself in. Mari had more important things to do at the moment. With a deep breath and a small pep talk in her head, she slowly peered around the corner of the wall. Her eyes immediately began to lock on and scan the scene in front of her. A very inclosed and messy scene it was really. Pressed up against the wall was a furious boy, growling and scowling at his attackers. He was beaten and bruised, scarred up and bleeding from the corner of his mouth as if he really tried to put up a fight. 

His attackers didn't seem as injured as he was, one of them only covered in small bruises and scratches while the other stood there untouched. One of them crouched down to the injured boy, grabbing his shirt and pulling him close to whisper something to him. Whatever it was scared the devil out of him, failing around wildly and shoving his attacker away as if he was diseased. Somewhere nearby was the girl who had screamed from earlier, probably a witness to the fight that broke out between the boys and yelled in retaliation. Of course, that didn't end so well for her since she was passed out on the ground like a rag doll.

"Well isn't this a nice surprise. We just keep getting more and more guests as time flies by." Mari felt her skin crawl as she turned around, almost giving herself whiplash at how fast she went. Towering over her was a boy, a helmet held in between his bandaged up hands that were stained with blood. The height was intimidating, having to tilt her head up in order to even meet his eyes. Mari wasn't even that short, she was just being faced by the green giant himself. "You shouldn't be out here, if you don't want to end up like her, that is," He spoke, eyes darting towards the other girl through his black hair.

The girl couldn't help but scoff, no longer shook by his sudden appearance. "You think I'm that weak? Honestly that's a very offensive comment m, how could you say something like that?" She scoffed, slipping away from him. Though he grabbed her wrist, restraining her from getting any farther from him. She huffed, curse tall people with their awfully long arms. "If you even try to hurt me, you'll regret ever even taking a single glance at me." Mari threatened, her eyes narrowing into a sharp glare of displeasure.

He grinned slyly at her as he threw the helmet to the ground, pulling out a phone from his back pocket. "Who's going to come to your aid when you don't even have this on you? How clumsy of you to leave it alone for anyone to pick up really." Her eyes were glued to the phone in his hands, resisting a groan of frustration. She was stupid for even thinking it wouldn't be taken. That was a very expensive phone she had in her possession after all, and it was her only way to contain Wooyoung at the moment. Did he even receive her text in the first place?

"Seonghwa? What are you doing?" She stopped her squirming to curse under her breath, knowing that her existence had been found out to them completely. Just her luck really, she had gotten out of that detention room too easily for something not to happen later on. It may have not been with a teacher, but Mari could put this on the same scale couldn't she? Both of them were trying to stop her from doing something. The boy practically dragged her over to the person who had called his name, she wouldn't be surprised if he had forgotten she was even in his grasp.

She finally gathered enough strength to yank her wrist away from him, rubbing it softly to soothe the pain. "I hope you never get married to anyone," she hissed under her breath, turning to face the boy with a frown. Yet she was greeted by one of the boys from earlier, who also towered over her like a skyscraper. Are all the rude men tall enough to touch the clouds? Is that why she wasn't ever going to get any taller than what she was? "Who even are you?"

Despite being dressed in black from head to toe, he smiled at her. It wasn't like the devilish smirk that the first boy— Seonghwa —had adorned not in any way, shape, or form. It was bright and beaming as if he didn't have a purple bruise dangerously close to his left eye. "Don't tell me you lost your way too? Jesus, did you people never grasp the concept of directions in school?" He asked, making both Seonghwa and Mari roll their eyes at his statement.

"Look, just give me my phone back and I'll be on my way," she told them, holding her hand out for her wanted item. However, Mari's eyes couldn't help but dart over to the injured boy every so often, a disgusting feeling filling up her chest. She had seen this situation before, experienced it first hand even. The whole thing felt like déjà vu to her. Probably because this was an almost identical situation she had been in years ago as a kid.

She wasn't the one being attacked, but a bystander to what was happening. A child around her age was being antagonized and threatened, yet everyone had turned a blind eye to it. It was odd, given the fact that it wasn't bullying from other children, but blatant harassment from adults. Being extremely brash and impulsive in every action she took as a child, she just... jumped in to help without thinking.

Of course she almost got killed in the process, she was an elementary schooler after all. She didn't have all the skills she acquired in her life now. Mari was just trying to help out someone else was innocent in their situation.. But it all worked out in the end though, so does that really matter? Mari was still alive to this day, and now Wooyoung was her best friend. See? Good things could happen from throwing yourself into the heat of danger!

And that was exactly what she was about to do now, expect she had more experience and didn't have a chance to possibly from die being reckless. The boy resisted a giggle as Seonghwa handed her phone to him, waving it around the air like it was some sort of toy. "You expect me to believe that? Please, I wasn't born yesterday you know. I bet you're here for him, right? How heroic of you! Heroine coming to save the "civilian."" He taunted, bitterness seeping through his mouth as he spat the word "civilian".

Mari frowned, opening her mouth to retaliate in the quickest and rudest she could possibly could. Yet before she could even clap back, the two behemoths attention was suddenly turned to something else. Someone new that she had spotted earlier. "Aw, don't look so mad. They're only messing with you." He had explained to her, stretching his arms as if he had just woken up from a slumber. "It's all in good fun, is it not? No need to feel so offended."

The boy leaned up against Seonghwa as the taller of the three nodded vigorously. Great, she was being ganged up on by all three of them. Two of them on the taller side of the spectrum and what seemed like the leader is the bunch. Mari's eyes narrowed as she watched his very move, trying to figure out how much a threat he really wise. You'd be surprised by how much he truly embodied the "badboy" trope. The one in stories that every girl falls head over heels for despite knowing he's in deep shit?

Faded blue dyed hair, piercing practically littering his ears, and tattoos covering his entire neck and forearm from what his shirt and jacket would allow her see. Perfect "badboy material". He would probably make any of the girls in her classes swoon and faint over him. Though Mari found it to be pathetic if she had to be honest. It was like he was desperately yelling at people to pay attention to him! She didn't find that attractive at all. "What's wrong, princess? Cat got your tongue?"

Her skin crawled at the name, almost forcing her to vomit at the mere sound of it. "Okay, you know what, just give me the phone so I can leave. I won't call the cops and I won't tell a teacher. Just, give me the phone and leave the boy alone." Mari tried to convince them, trying to stay as calm as possible. The girl didn't have the shortest fuse in the world. Actually, she thought of herself to be somewhat patient with others. And yet now she felt as though she was going to lose her mind sooner than later.

He shrugged, complying to what she wanted quite quickly. He reached over to the tallest of the two, urging him to hand over Mari's phone without arguing. With a pout dawning tallest boy's face, he reluctantly dropped it into the ringleader's palms. The boy smiled brightly at him for complying and then turned around to look back at Mari. "I can give you the phone back," He told her, holding it out for her to take. And yet when she tried to snatch it from his hands, he held it back. "However, I cannot that boy's safety, princess. He doesn't really deserve it."

"And that's not up for you to decide." She snapped, clearly annoyed by the three. Though with one quick glance to check up on the boy she was going attempt to save, she noticed something was off. That the boy was gone. He had completely disappeared from where the trio had left him, as if he wasn't there to begin. A clock ticked in her head as everyone began to add up and she noticed a figure slowly creeping up behind the ringleader. "Ah hell." She mumbled, realizing how wrong she really was.

Without thinking she grabbed the leader by his jacket, pulling him towards her in an attempt to get him out of harms way. The injured boy had tried to save had lunged forward, reaching out to choke out the leader. The two taller boys reacted as quickly as Mari did, restraining the injured boy swiftly with a deadly glare in their eyes. The leader's eyes widened at their close proximity, shocked by the sudden turn of events. Though his expression quickly changed as a smirk played on his lips. "What's not up for who to decide, princess?"

She gagged in response, shoving him away as fast as she possibly could. "Okay I was wrong, whatever. Give me the phone so I can go. I won't be in your way anymore." The leader was practically beaming at her, dropping the phone in her hands with an innocent smile on his face. All three of them batted their eyes and smiled at her widely, expecting some more words to come from her after proving her wrong. "Go get a job or something, stop messing with people. That badboy stuff isn't cute at all."


	6. Lady of the Underground

With that being said, Mari did get detention again. Expect this time she wouldn't be alone. That trio she had met got caught in the act as soon as she stepped away, being questioned and scolded for their actions. Of course, the authorities had gotten the situation somewhat mixed up, believing that they were the ones attacking the injured boy at that moment. She could remember their faces exactly, each one whipping around with big pleading eyes to for her to tell the truth. Mari didn't, obviously, as payback for what they had did to her.

Thankfully she wouldn't be joining them though, much to her mother's disarray. Her father had... an important mission that required a few select people to know about. Yet despite that fact, everyone in the faction would be attending. It was confusing and a little concerning to think about at first. What could be so big and so serious that he had to bring everyone under his power? And then it hit her when she was suddenly asked if she was in possession of any sort of formal attire. The mere mentioning of a dress sent chills down her spine as she pieced together what was going on.

The Seo Faction was holding a party, a masquerade in celebration of the faction's "success". In reality, it was the site of a very important mission that could make or break the relationship between certain people and the boss. It had recently been brought to light that there was a traitor among their ranks, disclosing top-secret information to outside forces. It was possibly the reason why the associate from Mari's last mission had known about her connection to him. Due to this, the traitor had to be exposed and disposed of as quickly as possible.

But they couldn't just line up everyone in a row and interrogate each and every one of them. That would take too long, and the longer they took the more information would be leaked. That's why the masquerade was proposed, everyone would be in one place and shady actions could be caught almost immediately. Mari, Wooyoung, and San were placed among the small group of people who would be scoping out and finding the traitor. There were other people too, of course, perhaps three or four more people to cover the entire room they were taking up.

The traitor would nowhere to run once he was exposed. With several people placed absolutely everywhere to restrain him, a simple and easy task. They wouldn't even be able to tell who is after him, seeing as everyone would be wearing masks to hide their identity. As long as no one spoke once confronting him, he'd have no idea who was on his side and who wasn't. It was a fun plan that Mari was excited, ecstatic even, to be apart. There was only one part she wasn't very fond of.

"Couldn't I have worn a suit or something?" Mari complained, brushing off the dress she had been forced to wear. She felt uncomfortable, she felt like she couldn't move. What would happen if the traitor was getting away, she was the closest to them? She'd have to give chase, but how fast could she really go in the strapless dress she was in? The girl doesn't wear heels on a daily basis like her mother! She felt like a child learning how to walk all over again, her legs trembling with every step she tried to take. "I'll become a hassle dressed like this!"

"Well I think you look quite nice," Mari resisted a groan as she turned around, finding a Wooyoung smiling behind her. She gave him a half-hearted smile, thanking him for the compliment but her self esteem didn't go any higher. He snorted at her attitude, handing her one of the two masks that was in his hands. "Here stupid, stop complaining and put this on. San is already inside because I made a bet with him on who would catch the traitor first. The longer I wait out here, the more unlikely my chances are of getting myself some money from him."

"That sounds awfully stupid, count me in," Mari commented, taking the mask from his hands and examining it. It was primarily black, a few fake gems on mask being red to match with the dress she was wearing. Feathers sprouted from the right side, making it more eccentric and interesting to look at. She glanced at the pure black suit Wooyoung was wearing and back to the mask, connecting the dots as she turned to him. "You made us match on purpose, didn't you?" She asked him. The boy whistled in response, shrugging his shoulders as he walked ahead of her.

"I don't know, did I?" Wooyoung questioned her, placing the mask he had for himself on his face. It was clearly the invert of what she had, just take away the fake feathers and put black lace on it instead. Mari shuffled over to her friend, grabbing his shoulder to stabilize herself. Once he had stopped completely and realized what she was doing, she gave him a light smack on the arm. "I thought it would be fun! It was San who suggested it! I bet if you go find him right now he'll be matching with us just as I am with you." He called out, practically speaking in pouts as he tried to get his point across.

"You two are the most childish people I've ever met," Mari spoke, sarcasm dripping off her tongue. She couldn't really say anything about their behavior, she was their friends. She was bound to their stupidity by a mere friendship pact, and now the girl could never get out of it. If either of those boys decided to do something dumb, she had to follow along with it. That's what friends are for after all! Idiots stick together. "I bet you're going to do something stupid and drag me along right?"

Two men were placed at either side of a door of a large white door, faces never twitching into a frown or smile. They were security, here to pick out who seemed shady and who seemed safe. She most definitely knew they were placed at the doors to make sure the only people who got into the masquerade were members of the Seo Faction. Didn't want any civilians to crash their party and witness their deeds. "Of course we are," Wooyoung suddenly replied, snapping her out of what seemed like a trance. "San has something planned because he has a bone to pick with one of the soldiers from a mission he was on. I just hope he's not going to start a fight."

"Hope?" Mari asked as the security took a hold of the door handles, slowly opening up an entrance for them. "You better pray he doesn't start a fight. When someone pisses him off, there's no stopping him. You practically have to keep him on a leash when he's angry." San was one of the nicest people she knew, but there was a demon hidden under that friendly aura he always tried to radiate. All it takes is one bad misstep and he's sprouting devil horns and a forked tail. It gave her chills down her spine at the mere thought of seeing him mad, but she always saw that side of him whenever they were on missions with each other. Truly scary, like you're standing right before the devil at his throne.

"That depends on what the guy does to San. You know I'll let go of him as soon as I think someone deserves what's coming to them." Wooyoung reminded, holding out his arm for her to link up with him. She rolled her eyes at the gesture, but did so anyway. He was the only thing keeping her from collapsing onto the ground after all. He grinned as he tugged her along, practically dragging her through the door as if she was the one on a leash. 

The room was filled to the brim with people, virtually everyone in the faction was in one single room with each other. The atmosphere was surprising light as people danced and drank their sorrows and woes away. They were probably thankful for this chance they were getting, a moment's rest in the busy days of criminal work. Both Wooyoung and Mari had to shy away from someone proposing a toast, trying to handle them a glass of wine to get them to join in. They may be on the idiotic side but they weren't stupid, they had a job to do. Plus, Mari didn't want to know how alcohol tasted.

After dodging another group of people that tried to tangle them into their circle, Mari held on tight to Wooyoung's arm. "How about we make a beeline towards my parents?" She whispered to him, pointing towards the stage near the back of the building. It was less crowded there, clearly being protected by some of the highest-ranking soldiers the faction had to offer. She saw her father appear from a curtain near it, greeting whoever had spotted him while his wife stood by his side.

"Wasn't the whole "I'm related to the big boss of the mafia" thing supposed to be a secret?" Wooyoung mumbled with narrowed eyes. She gave him one annoyed glance and quickly apologized. How was her walking up to the two highest-ranking people in the faction going to give her away? She's done it plenty of times before, this wouldn't make any difference. "That's beside the point, we don't even seem normal at this party right now. Why don't we chill out for a minute? If we dance together we'll look pretty natural, don't you think?"

He shot finger guns at her, trying to nudge her over towards the almost empty dance floor. Mari froze in place, subconsciously grabbing the hem of her dress at the mere thought of Wooyoung's suggestion. The two of them used to dance together all the time when they were kids, though usually, it was her friend spinning her around in circles all the time. It was fun, but it wasn't Mari's... specialty. She'd look like one of those inflatable tube men at car washes, especially if it with Wooyoung.

"Are you insane?" She hissed at him and he nodded his head vigorously in response. "Wooyoung, we have a task complete. We can't waste time dancing— Wooyoung!" The boy wasn't taking no for an answer, grabbing her by the hands and dragging her into the middle of the room. Mari tried to resist as much as possible, digging her heels into the marble floors to stop him. Yet he simply yanked her away from the crowd, both of the two stumbling into the middle of the dance floor like children. "Wooyoung, no." 

"Do you remember that time we put on a show for your parents?" He asked her, gripping her hands right so she shouldn't run when she had the chance. Mari thought about it for a second, taking his words into consideration before shaking her head no. Wooyoung giggled at the thought, shifting side to side on his heel. "Your dad had deemed you as the princess and your mom made me the prince so we had to dance together like royalty."

"Oh my god, stop right there." She interrupted, suddenly remembering what he was talking about. They were like six years old when that event happened! Why did he have to bring it up now? It was the most embarrassing thing in her life, she thought she had locked it up and threw deep into the void of her thoughts. Though clearly Wooyoung still had the key to that memory and was very intent on opening it. "I'll literally punch you in the face, don't say another word about it."

"I had no clue how to dance back then! I barely remember the routine but..." He trailed off, a devilish smirk growing on his face. Wooyoung held up her hand above her head, twirling her around. Mari let out a surprised yelp, unstable on the foreign heels she was wearing. "But I remember starting you off with a spin, making you so dizzy that you couldn't even walk straight!" He began to sway side to side, clearly enjoying the torture he was putting her through.

"Wooyoung—!" She had to resist a scream when she was suddenly dipped towards the ground, almost hitting her head on the floor. When Mari came back up, she looks disheveled, her face in a state of panic and pure shock at what happened. Wooyoung snorted at her expression, clearly finding it funny. She remembered him doing exactly that when they were younger, expect the boy had genuinely dropped her. Her parents were in a state of distress when she hit the ground, crying about how her head hurt. 

"At least I brought you back up this time?" He asked her, giving her an awfully bright smile compared to the evil one from before. Mari wanted to be mad so bad, but she couldn't. All the girl could do was huff, a half-smile playing on her lips. She took a quick glance behind him, catching her parents' stares. Her mother was grinning from ear to ear, pulling on her husband's sleeve to get his attention. All it took was one look from her father to tell that he was totally over the situation, turning away to handle whatever other business he had in mind.

She turned back to Wooyoung, opening her mouth to speak but was interrupted before she could. San came through the crowd, nearly tripping over his own two feet as he rushed over to them. It took both of them by surprise, catching the two off guard as he placed his hands on their shoulders. "I hate to interrupt, but we've got sort of a problem. We've spotted the "traitor", but the Kim Faction... they're here. They've crashed the event."

"They've what?!" The two asked in unison, unsure of what to think of the situation. How did they get in? How did they figure out that they were even hosting an event with everyone together even? Mari's mind immediately thought back to the traitor, cursing under her breath at the thought of him. He probably gave the information to the other mafia, allowing them access to an event they weren't even invited to. "What are we going to do? We can't start a fight with them now. There are too many people in one spot, it'll turn into a bloodbath."

"The Underboss says we should split up. Wooyoung and I are going after the traitor. You're staying out here to make sure the Kim Faction doesn't try anything." San stated, telling them they're roles in this unfortunate situation. "I don't know if all of them are wearing those brooches on their clothing, so be on the lookout for anything sketchy. They're hiding in disguise just like we are." Wooyoung was going to take off as soon as the conversation ended, but Mari stopped him before he had the chance.

"Watch for the Kim Faction? I can't do that. We have a mission to complete first, and that's taking down the traitor in our ranks. Screw the other faction right now, this is more important. We have to get the guy who is spilling our information to the enemy." She complained, holding on tight to his wrist as she spoke. Wooyoung bit his lower lip, glancing towards where San took off running. "Wooyoung please, you know I can't just sit here with a minor job like this. I can't do that."

"Just follow the Underboss's orders for now, okay?" He told her, taking her hand off of him before racing after San. Mari watched them disappear in the crowd with a defeated look on her face. Being left out for the smaller job felt bad like her skills were being put aside to keep her out. Did the Underboss not think she was up for the task? It felt even worse that she had been left out in the open, too, standing on the dance floor alone.


	7. Devilish

"Asshole," Mari mumbled, sitting down a table with a huff. It wasn't directed at Wooyoung, she couldn't blame him for his decision. She had no true reason to be bad at him anyways. What she was really riled up about was the fact that the Underboss was undermining her abilities. The girl had proven herself to be a very skilled individual! She was probably one of the best in the faction if she had a say on the matter. Placing her under watch of the Kim Faction was a waste of her abilities.

She couldn't just disobey her orders though. She has no idea who the traitor is, all she knows is that he's been spotted. Plus Wooyoung and San had disappeared into the crowd like smoke, unable to distinguish who was who. Of course, Mari knew her friends rather well. The mere sight of their back would let her know who was who. However, there were too many people in the room combined with the Kim Faction's presence. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

With a frustrated frown growing on her face, her eyes trailed across each person she could see. She tried to see if she could spot the skull brooch on their outfits, distinguishing whether or not they were from the Kim Faction or not. Yet San had told her they're not all wearing a brooch, they would give them and their numbers away. If she wanted to figure out who was who, she'd have to look at their demeanor and discover any suspicious behavior. "This is the worst job possible. How am I supposed to do this?"

"Now what poor soul left you all alone here?" Mari jerked away from the sudden voice, snapping out her slight daze and turning around to see who was talking. A stranger was standing behind her, eyes gleaming behind the mask he held up. She couldn't see his face as at all, the covered up entirely by full face mask on his face. Yet she knew he was smirking at her, eyes burning ablaze and his lips probably holding the power of a devil. The girl was immediately on guard, her eyes dropping to the skull brooch in his jacket. "How could he leave such a pretty robin on her own?"

"Kim Faction, scum," She hissed, scrambling out of her seat to put some distance between the two of them. He chuckled at her response, muffled behind the suffocating mask he wore. He took one step towards Mari and she took several more back, reaching for a weapon despite not having one on her. Were Wooyoung and San armed? Or were they just as unarmed as she was. "Stay away from me. I don't know what you want, but you surely won't get anything from me." Mari narrowed her eyes as the masked man nodded understandingly, slowly raising his hands up as if he was being arrested.

"Don't worry little robin. I'm not going to harm you." He reassured her. She didn't feel so assured though as the two were slowly backing into a corner. The farther back they walked, the less populated the area became. Mari didn't like the way things seemed to be going, she needed to find an escape. "I have no bad intentions, I simply approached you because you were alone. Can you really hurt me for trying to comfort a poor broken robin?" He asked, clearly trying to prod her into something.

"I have no idea what you're talking about. However," Mari hissed in response, stepping on his foot with the heel of her shoes. His eyes widened at the sudden pain, bending over to cradle the pained foot. "You wouldn't dare touch me on such a neutral ground. The moment you let a malicious act occur in this room will be your last waking day on this planet." She informed him, slipping past him while she could. Those heels did have a use after all don't they? She may not be the best at walking in them, but they were at being used for self-defense.

Though due to her lack of experience in them, she wasn't as fast as she'd like to be. The stranger quickly caught up to her when he got the chance, grabbing her hands and keeping her right where she was. Despite the fact that Wooyoung did the exact same thing, it wasn't the same. This wasn't her friend trying to make her have a good time and enjoy herself. This was a Kim Faction member who was borderline harassing her. Had this been any other situation, she would have got him off her back by now.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," He protested, trying to get her to see what he meant. Suddenly, the Kim Faction member leaned in towards Mari's ear, whispering something so soft she could barely even catch it. "I saw it. You and him, dancing the night away like it was some sort of fairytale. And yet he left you, little robin, all alone and broken-hearted. You don't have to be though." Mari immediately reacted, trying to get her hands out of his grasp. Yet he simply held tighter, not taking his chances to let her leave.

"Let go you creep," She demanded, her actions futile in trying to escape him. He simply led her back to the dance floor by force, happiness practically radiating off of him as they walked. Once they reached their destination he turned right back to her, watching Mari struggle to be let loose from his hands. Her eyes burned into his, glaring daggers into skull. "I said, let go."

"All I want is a dance, little robin. I'm sure I can give you the time of your life!" He told her, blinking his eyes innocently at her. This was the first time Mari had been pushed around so much, she usually would never let a single soul try and take advantage of her. Yet here she was, being played with like she was some kind of doll. Mari needed a way out, she needed some sort of distraction to get him off her back.

And then she spotted him, her eyes locking into him as if she was an eagle spotting prey. Yeosang was near the edge of the crowd, talking to one of the trustworthy associates that had attending the masquerade. Mari could practically spot him from a mile away thanks to the compass tattoo that was marked on his neck. That was it, that was her escape. With an innocent look on her face, she spoke to him, "I'm sorry but I think my company is needed elsewhere."

With as much strength she could muster, she snatched her hands away from him. Shoving him back into a group of people conversing behind them, Mari practically speed walked over towards Yeosang. The boy had noticed her shuffling towards him, blinking his eyes curiously at her as she patched into his shoulder for support. "Hi, how are you doing? Enjoying the party?" She asked the group she had snuck into, flashing them a friendly smile.

Though her expression dropped as soon as she turned to Yeosang, whispering her situation into his ears. "I'm being harassed by one of the Kim Faction's men and I can't do much right now. You don't mind if I hang out with you for a bit?" He raised a brow her statement, turning towards the dance floor to see the problem for himself. That's when they spotted it, the masked man stomping past people on the dance floor. With a murderous yet betrayed expression on his face, he steadily made his way towards her.

"Now how in the hell did he get in?" Yeosang asked, but he wasn't expecting an answer. He simply flashed the same smile Mari had at the associates, apologizing for the sudden interruption. "She's a friend of mine, one of the faction's strongest and most skilled soldiers. It's basically an honor to have her join us, she's a very talented girl." The boy explained to the associates, watching as their eyes sparkled like stars at his words. Yeosang made her seem more glamorous than she should be.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," One of the associates spoke up, holding their hands for Mari to shake. With a quick glance towards Yeosang, she shook it cautiously. "I am Adachi Yuto, I work with both the Yakuza and your faction as your associate. I was with Yeosang during the discussions for... a transaction." she nodded her head in understanding. This was one of the people had met on his trip with his father in Japan.

Though the introductions were cut short when the Kim Faction member crashed the conversation. He shoved his way between Yuto and another associate, his heaving as he glared at her. "Why are you running away little robin? All I want is a dance, you know that. There's no need for running." He growled, his fist slowly clenched into a fist. Yeosang was caught off guard by his actions, subconsciously shielding Mari behind him.

"Don't move another inch. One wrong misstep and you'll be the Seo Faction's next target." He threatened, backing away from him to get some distance between the two. The Kim Faction's eyes widen at his words, almost considering his actions and what to do next. Yet the man simply laughed, first soft and barely audible to sinister and thundering. The associates that Yeosang was talking to quickly scurried away in freight as others turned towards them in confusion.

"Oh, the sweet little robin brought her friends into the mix? You think they scare me?" He challenged, going insane as the seconds went by. Mari glared right back at the man in front of her, grabbing into to Yeosang's sleeve as if she was getting ready to make a run for it. "Are you really getting riled up because of a dance, little robin? How pathetic! How prejudice of you little robin, when I did nothing to hurt you!"

The man tore the mask of his face, throwing it away for all to see. It looked like he was truly going mad, dark circles under his eyes and scars placed all over his skin. In sheer frustration he began to run his hands through his hair, ruffling up the mess on his head as he spoke. "Are you scared of me now, little robin? You've caught sight of who I truly am, won't you dance with me now you broken, little robin?"

He reached out his hands, practically lunging toward her to snatch her away. Mari was so close to just taking the heels of her shoes, using them as a way to defend herself from the crazed harasser. Yet before she had a chance, Yeosang placed her out of harm's way. If any blood was to be spilled, he wouldn't let it be by her. Someone else stopped the stranger as well, a fellow member of his own faction in fact.

A boy grabbed his wrist in a desperate attempt to restrain him from causing any more trouble. He had a skull brooch pinned onto his suit just as the stranger did, but he was wildly more composed than his fellow member. No words were spoken by him, but he did push him away from Yeosang and Mari. The harasser was fuming at his actions, wrestling with his fellow members to gain the control he once had. "How dare you? Do you believe I am the oppressor in this situation? My own ally? That witch must have you all under a trance! I am innocent! All I wanted was a dance with the little—!"

His words were cut short by the loud banging of guns shooting off. A feminine scream sounded through the room as the man dropped dead, oozing blood from his shirt and stuck in a state of betrayal. The associates who had witnessed the scene began to scream right after the first, running away as quickly as they could. Mari's eyes were wide with shock, her eyes soaking up all that was in front of her.

"Blood has been spilled and it's a Kim Faction member once more," Yeosang mumbled, staring down the member who held his ally dead in his arms. Blood shouldn't have been spilled, not at the masquerade. It was mixed grounds between two mafias, once they were alerted of their fellow member's death they were going to hunt them down and seek revenge. She slowly looked up from the corpse, searching the crowd for the one responsible for the kill.

Disappoint filled her head as she found Wooyoung, hands trembling as he lowered the smoking gun down. She was grateful for his help, she truly was. Yet He was specifically told by San that blood could not be shed in the environment they were in. It would start a full-on shootout once the death registered in everyone's mind. Mari wished desperately that she was mad at him, that she could walk over and scold him for his actions.

Yet he stumbled towards the two with despair radiating off of his figure. He dropped the gun he was carrying as he practically fell into Mari's arms without a second thought. "Blood has been shed, Mari," Wooyoung spoke, a horrified expression on his face as he clung onto her. "One of our own was shot by the traitor, Mari. Your mother has been shot." Her breath hitched at the words that came out her friend's mouth. The girl's brain was shutting down as it processed his statement. Her mother has been shot.


	8. Your Name

The masquerade had turned into a shootout. Of course, it did, both mafias were fuming with rage at the attacks that had been caused. The boy who had his fallen comrade in his arms had turned to them, mouthing something to them that they couldn't hear. They didn't have time to dwell on it though. Not when the Kim Faction had pulled out their weapons, shooting wildly at anyone who dared to cross their path. The action sent the entire party into a panic. Everyone, unarmed or associates without security, ran out of the building in a frenzy. The faction was known for their ruthless ways, willingly killing people without question.

No one wanted to be harmed by the savages, knowing that they wouldn't receive mercy if they were in the way. The Seo Faction, already furious with the Kim Faction and the traitor in their ranks, fought back. They were angered by their injured member and pulling out whatever they had on hand or could be used as a potential weapon. The opposing faction only saw their retaliation as a challenge, charging towards them as much strength as possible to defeat them. Their true target was to find the Underboss and true boss of the Seo Faction. Taking out the two most important heads of the mafia would either leave them weakened or disbanded.

It was later revealed to the faction that the traitor in their ranks was never truly a member. They were rather new, someone who had just been accepted as a soldier for them not too long ago. However, it had been revealed that they were going back to the Kim Faction, relaying important information that they had squeezed out of others. Even worse than that? They were a cop, corrupt and desperate to get one of the two factions exposed to the police department in the city. Unfortunately for them, they never got out of the masquerade alive. The traitor had been caught in between fire and the Seo Faction has gotten to him first.

Mari would have helped out with the traitor and the fight too, but her brain had completely shut down and needed to restart. With Wooyoung stuck in the same position as her, he wasn't able to do anything either. They ended up escaping the masquerade with Yeosang, who dragged them along to the car that the Consigliere and he had come in. At first, his father was going to reject them before noticing they're demeanor and the situation had finally dawned upon him. With a begrudging huff, he opened up the car door and let the two slid into his Rolls-Royce. No words were exchanged on what seemed like the hours-long drive back to the manor.

She didn't even see the condition her mother was in before she left. Reality didn't click with her until she got into the car with Wooyoung and Yeosang, too far away from the masquerade to turn back. Though, there was this feeling in her chest, like it was a relief that she didn't see her. Mari didn't know why, but maybe it was because she didn't know how she'd react once completely back in her senses. Not many things could break her, she wasn't so fickle with her emotions and thoughts. She has grown in a dangerous environment, after all, almost nothing could destroy her emotionally if it tried.

But this was different. This wasn't a petty threat to get her to do something. This wasn't her being held at gunpoint to get information. This was her mother, a woman of the mafia, a dealer who had so many tricks up her sleeve that you never knew what would come next. She had been harmed because no one was careful, she had been harmed as a distraction to lure out the two big bosses of the Seo Faction. Mari wasn't even there to defend her, practically all the way on the other side of the room. She was distracted by foes and didn't have time to pay attention to the true problem. She messed up, this must have been at least partially been her fault.

She would be lying to herself if she said she didn't want to cry. No, she wanted to do more than that. She wanted to kick and scream and sob at her actions. Not a single person had said any words to her, but she felt as though if they did, they'd say how disappointed they were in her. Mari had been distracted, she failed her task given to her by the Underboss. The girl had even complained about how easy it was and how useless it was to waste her skills on it. Yet look at what happened. For the first time, she truly felt like a failure, a disappointment, and continuously beat herself up over it. That's what she deserved... right?

And yet despite all the things that were clouding her mind and filling her with dread, she felt like she didn't have time to let it out. Not when the boy that sat beside her probably had a million and one things running through his mind. She had been leaning up beside Wooyoung the entire car ride, and never once did it dawn her to check on him. After all, he was the one who truly witnessed the attempt of murder. The boy was like her, just a lot more emotionally closed off. There were many things in his own childhood that lead up to this point, many traumas that plagued his mind about it on a daily basis.

He was leaning up against the window, staring out of it with an almost blank stare. The boy looked so intimidating like that when no sort of emotion or usual smile was present on his face. Any normal person would steer clear of his pathway just encase he snapped. Yet, Wooyoung was shaking. Not violently, it was barely noticeable if you were looking at him. But Mari could feel him trembling just slightly, as if he was suppressing the possibility of having a total mental breakdown. She rested her head on his shoulder, silently alerting him of her presence and that he'd be okay.

Mari had known Wooyoung since they were children, they practically grew up with each other despite the totally different environments they came from. She knew what made him blissful and she knew what made him grieve. This was just one of those moments where he was at his extremely vulnerability, reliving a memory in his head that he tried so hard to get over. She should know, after all, she was present for his breakdown when it happened and was one of the reasons the boy had joined the Seo Faction in the first place. Not just for her, but just to give the Kim Faction what they deserved.

"It's okay," Mari uttered, so softly that barely anyone in the car could hear it. Though Wooyoung did, forcing himself to relax despite the tension in his trembling fist. "You're okay." At this point, she didn't know whether she was saying it for Wooyoung or herself. She knew the amount of trauma that her friend had and she knew the amount of disappointment she had, so it really could be either. She almost didn't notice Yeosang lean up against her, as if offering her the same support she was giving Wooyoung. "We're okay."

* * *

Just like that, everything went back to normal. Well, somewhat normal. Her father was practically flaming about the masquerade, immediately calling the Underboss and Consigliere to his office as soon as he returned home. It was clear that the Kim Faction was no longer going to beat around the bush, they had already so publicly tried an attack on them and nearly succeeded in their efforts. With so many soldiers and associates wounded by the opposing faction, he wasn't going back down and run away like a coward. Her father has been dealing with the other faction for years, the rivalry and anger was too strong to turn away from. His pride was on the line.

So work for the Seo Faction had doubled. More soldiers were sent out to scout out for the Kim Faction and get as much dirt as possible. Dealers were spread around not just around the country, but the globe, in an attempt to get as many weapons and allies as they possibly could. Mari had heard that the Japanese Yakuza had fully committed to being one of the factions true allies, sending over their own supplies and men. Seo Faction returned the favor, doing as much as they could to keep their ally encase a dangerous situation decides to come up.

Those who were not being sent away in missions were either guarding her mother or training somewhere deep below the manor. San and Wooyoung had both taken separate paths, not seen together as much as they usually were. San was placed as a guard for her mother, watching over the recovering woman almost twenty-four seven. Of course, this meant that he couldn't leave his position at all until she was able to defend herself once again. This left Mari alone, as she could barely catch San alone anymore. If he ever left his post as her mother's guard, he'd be punished accordingly. With her father's rage still burning strong, who knew what he'd do.

Wooyoung, on the other hand, had taken the route of training. He was too shaken up by old memories that plagued his mind to guard anyone, he left too unfit to even be going out on missions either. So for hours almost unending, he was training himself in various skills Mari though he excelled in. Hand to hand combat, weaponry, self-defense, you name it. Every so often when she had the chance she'd go meet him, nothing that if he was left unchecked he'd work himself to death. Mari knew this was his way to keep his mind off of things, to continuously push back any haunting traumas that tried to strike. 

And Mari? She was doing neither. If she started guarding her mother, her secret might be compromised plus San was already looking after one person. If she jumped onto the bandwagon he'd be distracted between the two and she didn't want to become his downfall. With training, she had tried that. She was hanging around with Wooyoung and asked him countless times if he wanted to do it together. Mari thought she'd work better with someone she knew on her side, and yet he kept declining her suggestion. With her two friends both busy with other things that she couldn't jump in, she felt quite lonely.

It was only amplified even more when her mother had requested her to continue on with her daily life as normal. Even at her weakest, her mother still wanted her to experience the normal life of a teenager as much as possible. Mari was obligated to do as told, as her father was far too busy with more urgent matters and her mother was practically begging her to do as told. So she did so, returning to school with slight hesitation. It wouldn't be the same knowing that San, the only friend she really had there, wouldn't be with her. His presence made it much more bearable to deal with, even if he was in several different classes.

Yeosang seemed to notice her dread, offering to attend it as a student undercover. She rejected his offer though, knowing that the boy would be far too busy to deal with any sort of schooling. Mari had a hunch that just his stare would either draw people into him or drive them out. Knowing how the girls at her school swooned over cliches and tropes, they'd probably try to dig deep into him. Though if dug too deep into Yeosang's history, they might end up getting hurt. Or dead on a highway somewhere. The boy's father would probably pick one of those things to do.

So she went to school alone, earning suspicious glances from everyone in her class. She did disappear from school for an entire day, she didn't even show up for detention like she was told to. Mari only sent glares back at them, almost daring them to try and talk to her. With a simple look, the students who were watching her turned around in a hurry, not wanting to interfere with her anymore. That left her to sit in the back of the class like normal, just sleeping off her worries instead of paying attention.

Her teachers were concerned about her. It was a sudden change in behavior that they weren't used to. She had always shown an attempt to catch up to those around her, never before had she just completely given up. So the adults tried to talk to her, tried to get her to open up and talk about what was going on. Mari simply shrugged it off, saying she was just tired at the moment. She wasn't lying entirely though, she was extremely tired. Just for different reasons than the teachers believed. But they didn't need to know that.

Mari kicked her feet at the ground, walking along the sidewalk as her backpack slide down her shoulder. It was practically sundown, and she was walking the streets alone. It felt weird, she had never walked home alone before. Usually, she'd have Wooyoung and San by her side, taking the boy back first since he didn't know her relationship with the boss yet. Before then they'd all be running around together, carefree and playful like they weren't apart of a criminal organization. To the outside world, they were just a bunch of teenagers playing around and having fun.

Though Wooyoung hadn't shown up to take her home and San was too busy to even attend school, let alone walk home. So she was alone, dragging her feet across the concrete as she went back to the manor. Did it always take a long time to get home? All the times she walked with the boys, she never noticed the sun dropping behind the horizon. They even took daily detours to San's house or a nearby playground that was vacant of children. Hell, sometimes they'd even stop at the corner store that was nearby! Maybe she was just walking slower than she had realized?

Mari stopped in her tracks when a figure suddenly creeped out of the shadows in front of her, nearly giving her a heart attack. She wasn't expecting anyone to be out while she was, all the other times she had walked with Wooyoung and San they were completely alone. Yet the sun was setting now, and unknown dangers of the night would start to crawl out from their hiding places. She should know, the mafia was one of those dangers that were avoided at night. She was immediately on guard, mentally preparing to the backpack on her back as a weapon if she needed to. The thing weighed like a thousand bricks, it could probably knock someone out.

She had expected the figure to approach, attempt an attack on someone who was all alone. Yet she was mistaken as she watched them collapse onto the ground as if they were injured. Instinct kicked in to check and see if they were really wounded, that small sense of justice Mari had as a child flooding her thoughts. The closer the girl drew, the more she could recognize who was laying on the ground. Mari's expression twisted with confusion and slight shock as she spoke," Wannabe badboy?"

There laid the boy from her encounter after detention, clad in leather and a million tattoos just like before. When he heard her voice, he forced himself to sit up, holding onto his arm with a crooked grin on his face. "Princess! I didn't expect to see you here." The boy's voice was so gleeful and filled with mischief that she almost didn't realize how beaten up he was. The leather jacket that covered his arms was ripped, oozing a crimson red and staining his hand as he tried to cover it up. 

His face was littered with injuries, a bleeding scar on his cheek and blood dripping down from his nose like it was a trend. One of his eyes were slightly closed, swollen and purple like he had been hit pretty hard. The boy looked like a complete mess. Yet here he was, smiling at her so hard he might look like that permanently. "Dear God, what happened to you," Mari mumbled, subconscious touching the now fading scar she had gotten from an earlier mission. It was the one that sparked the ever-growing war between the two factions, where the Kim Faction had lost their Underboss.

"Aw, are you worried about me, princess?" He asked her, trying to sneer at her words but wincing at the pain he was in. Mari rolled her eyes at him, quickly making her way towards him only to step over him and continued on her way. She honestly couldn't bother with him right now, she had more important things to left her mind dwell on. "Wait, wait!" He called, reaching out to her to make her come back. "Some asshole had tried to steal my bike behind my back. Of course, I tried to fight him, but I got ganged upon. I would head to my friend's house to sleep this off but he lives too far from here."

"Sleep it off?" Mari replied, almost alarmed at his answer. He didn't need to sleep off his injuries, he needed to get them treated. They could get infected, or never heal, or worse, he might even open up his wounds even more. "Are you crazy? Do you go and sleep them off all the time?" She asked him, turning around and crouching down beside him to get a good look at all the wounds he had. The boy had thought about it for a second before nodding his head slowly, almost clueless of his actions. Mari rolled her eyes as she took his hand in hers, eyeing the bruised knuckles.

Whether he was telling the truth or not, she knew one thing for sure. He definitely did fight someone, and fought hard. His knuckles were a burning ready, bloodied and slightly purple the more she looked at it. The boy was reckless, probably too reckless for his own good. "God, you're the biggest idiot out there," Mari mumbled as she let go of his hands, standing up and holding her hands back out to him. "There's a convenience store nearby. I should know, I walk this way all the time. I'm no doctor, but I can at least ask for a first aid kit and help them heal."

The boy grinned at her, taking her hand carefully as he got back on his feet. He swayed violently for a second, nearly unable to stand on his own. Though without a second thought he slung his arm around Mari to stabilize himself. "Thanks, princess. You're a lot nicer then you make yourself seem." The girl rolled her eyes at his comment as she slowly began to walk forward, dragging him along with her to the convenience store. She was glad it wasn't too far, she didn't know how long she'd be able to carry him like this for. "Hongjoong. I'm Hongjoong by the way."

Mari glanced up at him, letting his words sink into his head. She finally got his name, and she didn't expect it to be so easy. In fact, she wasn't even looking to find out anything about him at all. She shrugged away her thoughts, looking forward so that she didn't trip his or her feet. "Mari," the girl responded, returning the introduction, "I would say "nice to meet you", but this is some pretty weird situation we're in. And I've already met you before." Hongjoong laughed at her statement, and his grin would have grown even wider if he wasn't a puddle of pain at that moment.


	9. The Invite

It's been a few weeks since Mari had last seen San at the school. She had learned to deal with things on her own, while Wooyoung slowly began to jump back into the flow of things. Every so often she'd meet Wooyoung in the courtyard during her lunch break, sitting with him in the far corners of the school. He never did it before, but he seemed to sense her loneliness and tried to join her whenever he got the chance. They'd talk while he sat on the table after jumping a gate that surrounded the school, Mari would share her very pitiful lunch with him if it was any good.

The two would get stared at for a while, seeing as Wooyoung didn't attend. He was a complete stranger on the school grounds and yet no one found out about it. A few days had passed of him hopping the gate until one of the teachers found out about his antics. They chased him away and Mari was given detention for bringing a stranger onto school grounds. After that, the school was forced into a dress code to differentiate between students and strangers. Now they looked like all the other stereotypical schools: collared shirts, plaid skirts for girls, long (or short) black pants for boys... it made her want to vomit.

That didn't mean Wooyoung would stop jumping the gate. The moment San would return, the two would be sharing clothes so that they could sneak him inside. Mari also noticed that a certain trio of boys had refused to comply with the dress code unlike everyone else. Sure they had their black pants and collared shirts but they stood out compared to everyone else. Wildly colored hair, piercings littering their ears, black leather jackets that hung off their shoulders. The number of times Mari would look up from her work to find some posse of girls drooling over them was disgusting.

And yet every time they passed by, one of them would suddenly slow his pace down. He'd catch her eye every time, the newly dyed blond hair of his falling into his eyes as he flashed a mischievous smile. Mari would ignore it if she had the chance, but how could she when a girl would nearly pass out at his gaze? How could she when she heard jealous boys whisper and murmur about his privilege and presence? She complained about it to Wooyoung all the time. She could barely focus in class because everyone would immediately redirect their attention towards him. All she wanted was a passing grade to get through her senior year!

She'd have to learn to deal with it when there were numerous people coming up to her almost every day. It was an odd change, no one ever tried to speak to her before. The girl would always radiate an aura not to be messed with in a desperate attempt to keep herself away from any sort of harm. Yet every other day she had a student walk up to her cautious and ask her questions about her other partner crime. They all wanted to know about San's whereabouts as his countless absences were adding up the longer he was away.

She didn't know why they were coming to her though, had San spoken about her when they weren't together? Or maybe she could be seen after school walking home with him. Honestly, she didn't know. They never specified how they had caught wind of Mari's existence. It didn't seem like they wanted to either. All they would do was come up to her before class or in the hallways, asking her millions of questions about her friend's existence. "You're Mari, right? Do you know where San is? What's he doing? Why isn't he coming to school?" Those were the things they'd bombard her with.

They seemed like genuine questions they were asking, she didn't sense any sort of malicious intent behind their words. But even so, she couldn't trust them, especially with such sensitive information like where San was and what he was doing. So all Mari could do was flash them a stiff smile and shoo them away as she said, "He's just sick. He caught something contagious so he's gonna be out for a little bit. I'll tell him you were asking about him if I ever see him!" Though her words only temporarily soothed their worries, as every few days they'd come back to check on San.

She was getting sick of it, to be honest. Mari had no privacy anymore when she was constantly running away from concerned friends she didn't know about. Was San more social than she originally thought he was? She knew he was friendly when he liked to be, but friendly enough to have dozens of people ask about him? Mari was this close to putting up a sign on her back to stop asking her questions. She was tired of listening to them already! Why couldn't people just leave her alone after she answered their questions?!

"You okay, Mari?" Wooyoung's voice snapped her out of her daze, suddenly back in reality. The two stood separated by the gate, staring at each other through the closely-knit bars that kept him from entering the school. Her friend glanced in between the bars, trying to urge her to speak out about what was bothering her. With his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket he spoke again, "Is something bothering you...? You seem really off today. Wait, wait! Don't tell me... it's that motorcycle boy you were talking about wasn't it?"

She rolled her eyes at the thought of Hongjoong, leaning up against the gate and sliding down to the ground. "While he makes up a good portion of my problems, it's not for once. It's really San's awfully desperate friends he's made here." She confessed, looking up at Wooyoung to invite him down. The boy dropped to the ground almost immediately, sticking his arms through the bars so that he has a least some presence of being in there with her. "It's been how many weeks since San is out? I don't even remember, but it's been a while. And his little friend group constantly come to me for answers!"

"Technically you do have the answers," The boy snickered, retracting his hand from the bars as soon as she reached over to slap them. "I'm serious! You do! You just can't reveal it to them as that would put both you and San in a very bad and vulnerable situation. By the look on your face, you've also lied as many times as you can, and it doesn't seem to be working." Mari groaned as she covered her face with her hands. What was she going to do? At this point, nothing until San came back!

"Do you know when he'll be coming back...? It doesn't even need to be exact." She begged, turning around to face him. Mari put on her best puppy eyes to try and sway Wooyoung, know he had a soft spot for things like that. The boy immediately reacted, covering his eyes so that he wouldn't see her. "Please, Wooyoung? You hang around my dad a lot more than I do, you know when he'll off duty right? You'll help me because we're best friends right?"

Wooyoung let out a muffled scream before turning to Mari with a content expression. "Fine." The girl jumped up, celebrating her victory before her friend pulled her right back down to the ground. "However, you have to get me a male uniform from your school right afterward so I can go in and out whenever I want. If you do that for me, I'll tell you what your father has planned. Deal?" He asked her, a mischievous smile on his face as proposed the idea to her. She rolled her eyes and nodded, agreeing to it quickly so that she could get the information she wanted.

He sat back on the ground, thinking hard on any information his brain had retained. "Your mom is a trooper, I'll tell you that. Despite being shot in an almost fatal area, she's recovering rather fast. While I'm sure your father would like to keep security around her at all times, but he can't deny the fact she's recovering. So I believe he said everyone guarding her may be dropped from their duties later this week or the next." Wooyoung informed her, recalling all the intel he had to give her. She let out a sigh of relief. Finally, San would be returning to her side once again.

Wounds usually don't take weeks upon weeks to heal, however, the mafia had to take extra caution. They couldn't go to hospitals like regular people since they were wanted by the justice system at all times. So they had to use some sort of underground doctor, who illegally did their job for criminals. However, they were hard to find so it took a while for the Seo Faction to give get a hold of one. The Faction wasn't trained in medicine, so they couldn't do anything for her mother while a doctor had finally shown up. 

"Now, my payment," Wooyoung smiled at her innocently, holding his hands out to her. Mari blinked a couple of times before realizing what he meant, frowning at the realization. Why couldn't he wait till San came back? He said it himself, he comes back later this week or the week after. They can share each other's clothes, it's not like they've never done that before. "Go, Mari, go fulfill your part of the deal. Or do you want me to tell your father all your deepest darkest secrets? I'm a box full of surprises just waiting for him to hear!"

"Okay, okay!" Mari hissed, getting off the ground reluctantly. The boy gave her a blinding smile once more, trying to radiate a friendly aura to get her going. She rolled her eyes as she began to walk away, fetching the uniform Wooyoung had asked for. "Now go home! If someone catches you loitering around here while I'm gone you'll get the cops called on you. It'd be your second offense for trespassing!" She turned around to flash him the same smile he had given her, and the boy snorted in response as he began to leave the gate.

Mari pushed open the door to the school, entering through the back door. She knew exactly where she was, as she had come this way when she was fleeing detention that one day. Oddly enough while she was trekking the back way, she didn't see the trio of black motorcycles like last time. Either way, were parked somewhere else or they weren't here. It didn't really matter to her though, she was on a mission to retrieve an extra uniform for Wooyoung. She could only guess that had leftovers in the administration office.

"Excuse me? Are you Mari?" The girl turned around at the mentioning of her name, stopping in her tracks to find who was calling her. Behind her stood two students, glancing at her in expectation. One of them was a boy who towered over her like a giant, running his hands through the bright red hair that hung in front of his eyes. Next to him a girl, her eyes scanning Mari like she was some sort of machine. Though the hostile vibe she was giving her quickly dissipated once Mari nodded her head, giving them confirmation on who she was.

"Are you here to ask me about San?" The girl asked them, resisting a frustrated groan that wanted to escape her mouth. Instead, she left out a huff as she shrugged her shoulders with an annoyed expression dawning her face. "If you are, I've told everyone already. You can wait at least one week for him to come back instead of bothering me? I have other things to do right now." Mari told them, marching away down the hall to get as far away from as possible. Maybe that was a little too aggressive, but she was tired of being asked about San. They can wait for him to come back instead of bothering other people about it!

"Actually we aren't here for him. We're here for you." The tall boy spoke, catching her off guard with his voice. Based upon his appearance, Mari hadn't expected his voice to boom as loudly and deep as it did. She felt like she was going to be thrown off balance because of it. "If you're going somewhere, then we can talk and walk at the same time. I don't want to be a nuisance. I just wanted to talk to you, Hongjoong said it'd be a good idea to talk to you about it anyway."

She almost tripped over her own two feet at the mentioning of Hongjoong's name. Of course, he was behind something, the boy always found a way to bother her one way or another. "Who are you? The fact that you know Hongjoong is a lot more disturbing to me than it really needs to be." Mari asked him, glancing between the girl and boy cautiously. The girl scoffed at her words, crossing her arms as she made her best effort to keep up with the two.

"You don't know? He's Song Mingi. Probably the most popular junior there is at the moment. He plans the greatest parties this school has ever seen, everyone wants to go to his parties. Even college students will go if they have an invite!" The girl explained, a cocky expression on her face. The said boy snorted in response, looking away and scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. The praise she was giving him seemed to make him flustered and Mari couldn't help but wonder if she was just exaggerating.

He seemed so awkward, was he really this legendary party planner she was making him out to be? "Right, right... a junior with really good parties. So you must know Hongjoong through those parties." Mari questioned him. Mingi thought about what he was going to say next as if his history with the wannabe badboy was much more complicated than she was making it. "And you never explained who you were and your relationship with him. For all, I know you could be bluffing as hard as you possibly can right now."

The girl seemed slightly offended by her words but shook it off like it was nothing. "Me? Lee Jaerin, is my name. My father is the CEO of a private corporation and works in cooperation with my mother, they know Hongjoong parents. We do business with them when needed since we are fairly big stockholders." She boasted, almost as if she had been waiting for the chance to brag about how well off she was. Mari nodded in response to her life story, only needing two of the details that the girl has said. She shrugged past it, though, as Mingi suddenly spoke up.

"Anyways... I wanted to invite you to one of my parties I'm holding this weekend." Mingi offered as the trio got closer to the administration office. Mari felt her heartbeat race at the sudden thought but kept a straight face on the outside. Another party? It sounded like the heavens were after her neck if they were trying to send her straight back to somewhere she didn't want to be. The masquerade was formal, sure, but it had gotten crashed and ruined so easily. Who said it couldn't happen to a high school party?

"Hongjoong had told me to invite you, he said you seemed really stiff and needed to loosen up." Mari narrowed her eyes at Mingi, letting his words sink in as he spoke. So that's what that boy thought about her, huh? He was going to regret ever saying that behind her back. "I also wanted to invite you too, myself. I've seen you during the breaks sometimes and it doesn't seem like you get out. That San guy... he's in one of my classes and he talked about you a lot! So while I was going to at first invite San only... I think you should come too."

"You should go," Jaerin advised, giving her a more friendly smile than before. "I'm telling you, Mingi's parties are the greatest. The fact that you're being personally invited by not just him, but Hongjoong as well, is an honor you shouldn't slip up. It's also a great way to make connections to others with power, and you want power when you get older... right?" She asked her, clearly unaware of Mari's position in life in general. The girl scoffed at Jaerin's advice, she was looking down on her. She could just feel it.

"Okay." Mari agreed, stopping right in front of the administration office to face them both. "I'll go to this party or whatever since I know that wannabe badboy will bother me until I do. I'll "loosen up" and "make connections" too if what you want from me. After this, don't bother me anymore. I have more important things to do than attend a high school party." With that, the two students smiled at her in response. A little too sweet to be anything bad, yet a little too bitter to be something good either.


	10. Dynamite

"You sure you wanna do this?" Wooyoung asked her, walking down the street next to her. Mari didn't answer him, glancing at each of the houses they walked past and back down at her phone where the address was. The weekend had come quicker than Mark had wanted to, meaning she had to keep her promise to Mingi. She had been cold towards him the day he asked her, but truth be told she was nervous. Very nervous in fact. She had never been to a high school party, she was more focused on balancing school and the mafia together. So this was an experience that was very new to her.

Thankfully it wasn't some formal, business attire only party, so she literally threw on whatever she saw in her closest. Of course, Wooyoung helped make sure she looked decent since she was going to be in public instead of the privacy of her own home. Thank God jeans were a universally accepted fabric to wear anywhere. "Earth to Mari? Is your brain turned on?" Wooyoung asked, snapping his fingers in front of her to catch her attention. She took her eyes off of the address to find her friend giving her a very worried look.

"I'm serious, you sure you want to do this?" He stopped right where he was, preventing the two from going any further. The house they were trying to reach was in sight now, they could tell it was the one they were looking for. Out of all the other houses they had passed, the one they were trying to find had all of its lights turned on, dozens of people entering and leaving either through the front door or what seemed like a gate. Loud music was blasting from the house as well, though what was being said was practically inaudible. And they weren't even that close.

"I can't back down now if I wanted to, I made a commitment," Mari mumbled to him, a sigh escaping from her. The two had even snuck out of the manor just to get where they are now. Yeosang has reluctantly helped them with their escape, advising them to come back at some time the girl couldn't remember. It probably wasn't important if she couldn't recall it, but then again it came out Yeosang's mouth. Yeosang was going to be consigliere one day, so it probably was important. Though she just shrugged it off like it was nothing and turned to Wooyoung with a nervous smile. "At least you're here with me?"

"You know I can't stay for long." Wooyoung reminded her, flicking her in the forehead while he had the chance. "I'm supposed to go out on a mission later tonight, Underboss's orders. If I'm not there by the time everyone gets deployed I'll be in some deep shit. I'm lucky that he even let me off for the masquerade incident." Mari rolled her eyes at his statement. What happened at the masquerade wasn't his fault, lots of things had build-up for it to end the way it did. He just has a bad habit of blaming himself for everything.

"I won't do anything crazy after this, okay?" She began holding out her pinky for Wooyoung to take. The boy gave her a questionable look, clearly not knowing where she was going with it. Mari urged him to take his pinky in her's as she continued, "you're doing a lot of worrying right now, I can't tell. I won't do anything that's school-related to make you feel the need to jump the gate or come rushing to save me. After this one party, I'll go back to normal and we'll finally go talk to Yeosang about getting my dad off my back like originally planned, I promise."

Her friend sighed as he wrapped his pinky around hers, a fondness in his eyes growing bigger by the second. "I don't believe a single goddamn thing that's coming out of your mouth. But for my best friend, I'll pretend like I do." Mari gasped and shoved him away, lightly swearing at him in a playful way. The boy only laughed at her as he began to walk towards the house, leaving her behind as quickly possible. The girl went charging after him, catching up to him before anything bad could happen.

The two stopped once they were in front of the house, watching the chaos of privileged and intoxicated high students go on. Mari could have sworn on her way to the house she had seen some boy passed out on the ground with a bottle of alcohol in his hands. Wooyoung had pointed out the smell of cigarettes and something... unfortunate nearby as well, but it wasn't coming from the house they were at. A few partygoers were hanging out outside of the house, talking and flirting with everyone they saw fit. All it took was one good look at Wooyoung for the group to swoon, urging him to join them.

"This is a terrible idea," Wooyoung whispered to her, grabbing Mari's hand to make the partygoers back off of him. "I don't think tonight is going to end very well, Mari. I can feel it." She didn't say anything as she was building up the courage to open up the door that led to where the true party was taking place. There was no backing down, she had made a promise and was going to go through with it. The girl went through worse things than a high school party. With a deep breath and a determined glare in her eyes, she reached out her hand to knock on the door.

Before she could even open the door for herself, it swung open itself. It shocked the pair for a second before the host of the party stumbled into the door frame, trying to regain what seemed like his consciousness. His eyes slowly opened up as the situation began to process in his head, trying to recognize who was in front of him. "Mari, Right? You actually came, that's great! And you brought a friend too? I'm Mingi." He introduced, an awfully big smile on his face as he tried to be as friendly as possible.

Mari had truly gotten the wrong vibe from Mingi. He seemed so kind and awkward when they were at the private school, but his duality was a lot stronger than she could anticipate. Gold chains were hanging down his neck, stinging him with their cold touch though he seemed to be used to it. The white shirt he was wearing had a few buttons missing, meaning from the collar almost down to the end of his shirt had a chance of flashing the skin underneath it. His hair was disheveled and ruffled up as if someone had run their fingers through it roughly.

And god forbid her from talking about the countless markings that trailed down his neck. Mari narrowed her eyes at him, regretting her choices for not backing down when she had the chance. "This is my friend Wooyoung, he's just going to be tagging along with me for a bit while I go find somebody— Hongjoong." Maybe if she talked to Hongjoong for a short while and maybe pretend to drink whatever they had, then the boy wouldn't think of her the way he did.

"Aw! You should stay. I promise this party is gonna be a lot of fun. And Hongjoong? The last time I saw him was by the pool in the backyard." Mingi informed her but didn't really have a chance to say anything else. Not when a large crowd of people was surging towards him, begging him to come back to what he was originally doing. The redhead had given in rather quickly, his loud laugh echoing through the equally loud house as he was passed drinks and left their sight. Mari and Wooyoung were left standing in the door frame without a guide, looking more lost than they had expected.

Mari turned to Wooyoung, opening her mouth to say something before noticing the distraught look on his face. He was staring down at a text message on his phone before shoving it in his pocket. "My party ended before I could even begin, huh? I gotta go, Yeosang called a code red on me, the Underboss is looking for the soldiers who are going out on the mission. I'm sorry, I have to go." He apologized to her, turning on his heel and hurrying away from the house.

Mari almost didn't catch him before he left, grabbing his wrist and forcing him to face her. "First of all, hand over Yeosang's phone number. He doesn't give it to me but he gives it to you? That's not fair." She complained, causing Wooyoung to smile at her childishness. Though she quickly changed the subject, not wanting her friend to get any ideas that she was happy with what he was doing. "Right now? Dude we just got here. You can't bail on me like that. Can't the Underboss wait for a few minutes?"

"Sure he can wait for a few minutes, but I'm not the daughter of the mob boss am I?" Wooyoung snapped at her. He almost didn't catch the attitude he was throwing at her, as it took a few seconds for it to process in his head. Mari took it right to the heart, something very unlike her. How could she not when her friend threw her under the bus like that? "Ah— Mari, I... I didn't mean that I'm sorry. It just kinda flew out without me thinking. This faction is just the only thing I have left, I can't mess up any more than I already have."

Mari slowly took her hand away from Wooyoung's, an awkward laugh escaping her mouth. "Yeah, yeah I get that. I was just being a little selfish, wasn't I?" She asked him, earning herself a frown from her friend. "Go, before the Underboss decides to use you as a punching bag. And if he does just tell me and kill him!" She urged him, shooing him away from the doorstep. With one last apologetic look, he disappeared down the street in a rush to make it back to the manor.

Mari turned around and entered the house, mentally hyping herself up while as she closed the door. All she needed to do was hang out with Hongjoong, maybe take the smallest of shots, and get out of the party while she could. That would mean her socialization task for the week would be complete. She wouldn't talk to a single soul at her school for the next three months. "Pool. Mingi said he was at the pool in the backyard. Since that's outside, there shouldn't be as many people out there compared to here." 

She could barely hear herself speak, let alone speak. The music was blasting in her ears from strategically placed speakers in the house, making the quality much better than it could have been from one singular speaker. Plus the fact that everyone around her was constantly yelling to make themselves audible against the music was making it even harder for her. She just couldn't have it easy could she. Mari frowned as she settled on a plan, which was to make a beeline towards the back of whatever room she was in. 

Once she made it there, she could only hope she'd be greeted with a door that led to the outside. Mari began her journey towards the backyard, maneuvering through the crowds of people who were standing around idling or making their way towards what she could only assume was a dance floor. She threw out the thought of trying to be nice to those she pushed, knowing that they'd only retaliate in a harsh way no matter what she did. So there was a lot of pushing others around and stepping on people's toes in an attempt to try and get where she needed to be.

A boy suddenly appeared from the crowd, laughing along with two others that followed after him. Mari stopped herself from crashing straight into them, skidding across the floor like a charging bull stopping themselves from running. They didn't seem to notice her as they all piled up into another room, dimly lit compared to the other loud and bright room she was in. Curious, she took a quick detour, peering through the door frame to eavesdrop on whatever was going on. The room that they had entered seemed like the kitchen as that's where the majority of the drinks and food seemed to be.

Everyone inside was chugging down every bit of alcohol and beer they could find, placing bets on one another and drinking their worries away. Everyone except for one girl in particular. In her hand was a shot glass, still filled to the top with whatever liquid was inside. "Jaerin, you haven't drunk anything since you've been here. You sure you're okay?" Another girl asked, nudging her in the side a little bit as she checked up on her. Jaerin turned to the girl with a confused look before a smile appeared on her lips.

"I'm fine, don't worry about it! I'm just... looking for someone." She answered and the girl nodded in response, dropping the subject almost immediately. As soon as the girl had turned away from Jaerin her expression dropped into that of annoyed one, looking around the room with a glint of frustration in her eyes. Though when the Jaerin turned around completely and spotted Mari spied inside the room, her smile came right back up to greet her. "Oh! You came! Let me guess? Mingi left you alone at the doorstep because he was needed?"

"Yeah...," Mari answered truthfully as Jaerin walked towards her. "I had come with a friend and all, but he had to leave before he could even join me. So, now I'm here." She said with fake enthusiasm, leaning up against the wall in the barely lit kitchen. The girl laughed at her words, pulling the shot glass up to her lips to take a sip out of it. Before Mari would involve herself in anymore small talk, she quickly brought up something else. "Do you know the way to the pool in the backyard? Mingi said Hongjoong was back there. I was just going to talk to him and get this whole socialize thing over with."

Jaerin stopped herself from drinking whatever concoction was in her hands right before the liquid touched her lips. She suddenly seemed awfully interested and intrigued by Mari's words. "Hongjoong? Well, that's just the boy I was looking for! I didn't even know he had arrived!" She exclaimed, finding herself having the same goal as Mari. "I'll take you there, we can go together. Why don't you take a shot or something before we go? Do you really want to be sober the entire time you're here?"

The girl made her towards the drinks, urging Mari to follow after her. "Oh, no thanks. I don't drink, never even tried to. My parents and.... "job" wouldn't really like that. Now unless you have some water or soda in that fridge, I'm just going to wait for you at the door." Mari backed off, not daring to walk anywhere near the alcohol beverages. Jaerin scoffed at the girl's words, digging deep into the refrigerator for something that definitely wasn't water. "I'm serious, I don't think I really want to. I probably won't like it."

"Oh... Mari, right?" Jaerin asked as she grabbed a plastic cup from a bag instead of a glass from the cabinets. "You won't know unless you try it. And drinking is going to be one of the freedoms you'll have to get used to! This will probably taste bad at first but I promise, it'll be okay. The more you drink it the more you'll get used to it, this is what I started out with myself." Jaerin reassured her as she began to pour something into the cup. 

Within seconds Mari was face to face with the red solo cup, whatever drink inside just waiting to be consumed. "Jaerin..." She held their drink in her hands cautiously, every brain cell she had practically begging her not to drink it. Though when she looked up from where she was standing, only to see Jaerin looking at her expectantly with what seemed like encouragement, it felt like she had no choice. Who knew that the strong and powerful Mari could be peer pressured into something so small?

"Ugh, fine." Mari declared, suddenly drinking as much as she could in that one sip. Even Jaerin seemed shocked at her sudden courage to down as much as she possibly could. Though it didn't take long for the girl to meet her breaking the taste of the liquid finding its way to hit her as hard as possible. She dropped the half-empty cup on the table and tried to conceal the coughing she was doing. "Jesus Christ, that burns! Why was it so bitter?!" She complained, desperately trying to recover from her state of vulnerability.

Jaerin quickly helped her up, clearly startled at her sudden bravery. "You shouldn't have done that, not on your first try at least. It's going to taste bitter and burn until you get used to the taste... I should have told you early." Mari glared at her when she said that last sentence. She had only been describing it as bad, not god awfully bitter and burning herself alive from the inside! "Look, I won't make you drink any more of it okay? Let's just go find Hongjoong. I'm sorry. So, so sorry."


	11. You and I

"He should be somewhere back here." Jaerin mumbled, opening the screen door to the backyard. Mari peered from behind her, narrowing her eyes as she scoped out the area. She was right, it wasn't as crowded as it was indoors. Everyone mainly seemed to stay close to where the alcohol and loud music was, not wanting to miss a single thing. While the backyard was still generally populated with people, it wasn't enough to send her mind into a panicked frenzy. Her little headache she was having wouldn't like anything else that could make it evolve into some type of migraine.

The backyard was absolutely huge. There were a small bonfire people seemed to be gathering around, playing drinking games and socializing with strangers they had never seen before. Near it was a gigantic gated pool that a few boys decided to jump into without mingi's permission. As soon as one of them was able to get over, they opened the locked gate for all to pass by. One of them stood on top of a tap and yelled the news to all ears that would listen. Quickly after his announcement, everyone cheered in response to his words and joined him and his friends.

"Look, over there!" Jaerin called out as she stepped out of the door frame, leaving Mari behind her. She quickly stumbled after her, ignoring how uncoordinated she was. Her eyes followed the girl's fingers, trying to pinpoint exactly what she was looking at. It was a little hard when her sight kept going in and out of focus, forcing her to focus on one detail at a time. Fortunately for her, the first detail she was able to catch was the person she was looking for. "There's our man of the night."

There was a boy hanging out with his duo of tall friends, laughing and grinning about whatever they do. The chains that dangled down his neck jingling as one of his friends tried to shove the newly blond into the waters. He stumbled a bit before regaining his balance and punching one of them on the shoulder and rambling on about something. "Hongjoong!" The girl called her voice slightly higher in pitch and waving her hands like a madman. Mari would have tried to stop her, but she was too focused on leaning up against the wall for a little bit of rest.

Jaerin turned to her in glee, her smile a bit bigger than it normally was. Though she dropped it almost immediately when she saw the state that Mari was in. "Are you okay? If the drink is hitting you hard, there's a guest room upstairs you can rest in. Though I'm not sure if you'll be alone." She offered, holding her hands out for her to grab. The girl shook her head though, forcing herself off the wall and to stand up as straight as possible. Mari could handle whatever alcohol she had downed, she just needed a moment to get used to what was happening to her.

"I'm fine... we can keep going, I'm just... really out of it." She informed, ignoring how slurred her words were as she stood up. Jaerin gave her a questionable look but shrugged it off nonetheless. She simply grabbed Mari's hand and led her towards the trio of boys from earlier. The girl gave her the a-okay, that she was ready to keep going. But she was regretting that decision of hers with every moment she spent walking. Mari almost stumbled several times and was as uncoordinated as a baby who just walked for the first time. What the hell was in that drink?

Jaerin let go of Mari as soon as the three boys were in sight, beaming brightly at them as she held her hands behind her back. "It looks like the boys are trying to stir up trouble again. Yunho, Seonghwa, why would you try and push him into the pool? Those clothes are new! I should know, my mother told me to gift it to him last week." Mari wasn't really paying attention to whatever they were talking about. Her vision was going in and out of focus and she couldn't pinpoint what was in the drink that made her feel like this. Hell, it was making her head throb with pain every time she tried to think about it.

So she searched for the closest chair to her, which ended up being a patio sofa. Mari practically collapsed onto it, closing her eyes and trying to ease her headache at least a little bit. Though she only felt warmer than normal, her headache increasing in pain at the same time. God, she felt like an absolute mess. "Princess, you came! I though Mingi was lying to me when he said you had agreed to attend, but look at where you are! Quick, you have to spill everything he said, I know he tried to make me sound like a bad person." She slowly opened her eyes again, ready to strangle whoever dared to disturb her while she wasn't in the best of moods at the moment.

She came face to face with the boy from earlier, expect his glee and interest was now aimed at her instead of the pool. Mari's eyes widened a bit more as she looked him up and down, slowly picking the right words to say. At any given point she might spill out a messy curse at him, but that wouldn't be very polite would it? Not when he was smiling at her like she had been the only one he was waiting for the entire time. "Woah..." was all that came out of her mouth as she gave him the longest gaze she might have ever done in her entire life.

His smile slowly fell into a frown of confusion, looking at her a little more intensely than normal. He placed a hand onto her head, checking her temperature without the right tools to do so. She couldn't help but admire all the tattoos he donned, making out some intricate design she couldn't quite understand. Though she could spot the compass looking tattoo on his forearm, probably one of the biggest ones she could see. It reminded her of her friend's single tattoo behind his ear, hidden by the hair that fell on top of it. "Have you been drinking, princess? You seem like you're out of it now."

Mari sat you almost immediately, grabbing his face with her hands and making him focus on her and her only. "I don't know who you are... but you're a very, very beautiful person? Do you know that? You've been got a cool eyebrow piercing to top it off!" She exclaimed, taking the boy back for a second. His friends seemed to have caught what she has said, turning around in complete and utter confusion as to what just happened. Jaerin seemed shocked too, masking it with a strained smile and a questionable glint in her eyes. Though Mari only giggled, letting go of his face and falling right back into place on the sofa.

* * *

Mari swung her legs back and forth, the flush on her face was extremely prominent to show she has completely wrecked from drinking. Somehow they had pulled Mingi away from his other friends and convinced him to carry her to another room, away from all the commotion. Hongjoong and his friends watched as she giggled, her eyes never leaving the boy's figure. "I'm like... so serious." She told them, reaching out her hands towards Hongjoong. It was like she was begging for him to pick her up. "You're so pretty! You're like... an angel that fell from heaven... and you keep calling me princess... does that mean I get to call you a prince? You'll let me do that? Right? Haha, prince is so cute!"

Hongjoong was going to completely flip his shit. He's never had anyone flip the switch on him and use his own pet names against him. Yet here he was, climbing the stairs after his redheaded friend while the girl he's known for only a few weeks has blurted out gibberish. This was probably the tenth time she's told him he's attractive in some way, shape, or form. The boy was going to take the compliments of course, but it just felt odd. Had this mean any other girl he had met he'd be extremely into it and have his ego boosted to the clouds in the sky.

Yet this was Mari and from all the very short conversations she's had with him, this wasn't who she was. Hongjoong may have found joy in annoying her and pushing all the buttons he could find, but this wasn't it. He's not one to take advantage of a situation while someone is under the influence of alcohol. Though the boy couldn't say the same for any of the people downstairs. Especially the college kids who were always looking for a one night stand. "Hey, can you help me open the door, I feel like if I even try I might end up killing her."

Mingi had his hands full, not wanting to accidentally drop the girl he had personally invited. So Seonghwa slid past Hongjoong and Mingi, opening the door open and allowing the two to walk through. The room was completely empty, which was a little odd compared to how full all his rooms usually are. Yunho immediately closed the blinds to the windows so that someone would assume the room was occupied and wouldn't intrude. Seonghwa turned on a lamp for dim lighting that wouldn't hurt Mari's eyes whenever she regained her stability. Mingi did the final touches, dropping her in the bed as if she was a rag doll.

The redhead ruffled his messy and tangled hair as he turned over to Hongjoong and his crew. "So... how did this happen? I know it's partly my fault, I wasn't looking after her. But I didn't expect the next time I saw her be completely smashed." He glanced back at the girl pitifully, sorry for even pressuring her to come to his party. Though when the trio didn't answer his question, Mingi became suspicious. "You better speak up now, we have to find someone close to her to come get her. They'll want an explanation on how this happened." Yunho and Seonghwa exchanged worried glances before Hongjoong told him.

"Jaerin." He responded, leaning on the now-closed door to the room. Had Hongjoong never held himself back, he was almost sure he'd probably hurt Jaerin and have the cops called on them. At first, the girl wanted to act like she was concerned for Mari, telling them that she had offered her to sit down multiple times and asked her if she wanted to leave. Though Seonghwa, and his terrifying gaze when he suspects a liar, had gotten through rather quickly. She confessed that she made her drink, but only to liven up her time at the party. 

" _It wasn't my fault!_ " Jaerin had complained, crossing her arms like an angry toddler. " _I told her to taste it, not down the whole thing like an alcoholic! If she was really careful she would have checked if I had spiked or not but no. She wanted to drink the whole thing right then and there like a big girl!_ " The girl's rambling had gotten her caught red-handed. She didn't even notice until Hongjoong rose from where he was crouching, approaching her with such speed his friends almost couldn't catch him. To put it simply, he scared the devil right out Jaerin when he started swearing at her.

"You can't invite her to any more of your parties, you know that right?" Hongjoong advised, a frown growing on his face as he thought about Jaerin's misbehavior. Mingi only sighed in response as he listened to the boy ramble, knowing the giant scolding he was receiving. "She's spiking drinks, Mingi! Do you know how dangerous that is? The cops could be called on her and you'll be arrested too because you let her keep doing it every time she attended! You'll basically be an accomplice!"

"What can he do though?" Yunho asked, collapsing into a chair in the corner of the room. All three of them looked towards him like he had lost his mind, yet the boy only shrugged. "You know Jaerin follows Mingi around all the time, she's like a parasite and he's the unfortunate host. He'll never get away from her. And even if she was arrested you know her family is going to bail her out as soon as they can. That's how rich families work." The group collectively sighed at the same time, drowning misfortune. What we're they gonna do about Jaerin? There wasn't a lot if he had to be honest.

"Let's just focus on her for now, right?" Seonghwa asked, pointing towards Mari who seemed to be drifting off into sleep. He spotted a phone in her pockets and quickly swiped it up to try and get in contact with someone. Hopefully, her speed dial wasn't her parents or nine one one, that could cause a lot of chaos. He searched through her phone for her contacts, slightly surprised by the fact that her phone didn't have a password. "Look, her calls are usually towards this Wooyoung guy. We'll call him and ask him to come get her."

Mingi clapped his hands together as if he recognized that name before. "Oh! That's the guy she came with earlier! She said he wouldn't stick around for long so he's probably not in this area anymore. We can try though, just to test our luck. Is there someone else we can call if it doesn't work?" He exclaimed, quickly clambering to Seonghwa so that he could be included. Though the two of them didn't seem to notice the frown on Mari's face as she raised herself off the bed. She seemed to finally be clinking into the conversation for the first time since they brought her up to the room. 

"Don't call Wooyoung," She demanded, reaching out towards Hongjoong and begging him to come closer. "Wooyoung is... is a jerk! I don't wanna see... see him anymore! He's a huge jerk, he's not as nice as prince is." Mari blurted before falling right back into the bed. The group gave her a halfhearted laugh, definitely not listening to a word she was saying. The girl was intoxicated and spewing out whatever came to her head first. All they could do was ignore her and call any friends or siblings she had to come and retrieve her.

"Hongjoong, stay here and look after her, okay? I think the only person she's going to listen to right now is you." Seonghwa told him, giving him an apologetic smile before turning to the other two. "Mingi is going to call this guy since they've spoken to each other at least once, it'll be too awkward if it was with any of us. Yunho and I will wait outside and try and find him if we can." He decided, almost completely disregarding Hongjoong's protests as they all exited the room.

His eyes lingered on the now closed door, left alone with a drunk girl. This could let do many out of context situations if anyone walked into the room. "Screw you Park Seonghwa... I thought you had my best interest in mind at all times." Hongjoong mumbled, a sigh escaping his mouth as he fell back onto the bed. He turned his head to be greeted by the flushed and drunk Mari, who smiled at him despite not knowing the situation she was in. "You cause a lot more trouble than you think, princess."

She sat up expectantly, barely balancing herself when sitting upright. "That's okay! I get to be... be alone with prince." Mari gushed, running her hands through her already messy hair. Hongjoong snorted at her actions though he was taken aback when her hands found their way to the collar of his shirt. She pulled him closer to her, hiccuping as she laughed to herself. "I'm left all alone with you... how scandalous is that, huh prince?"

"Very," He responded, closer to her than he'd really like to be. Hongjoong tried to move away from her, but she only pulled him towards her once more. He yelped when Mari leaned back into the bed, pulling him down with her. He pressed his arms onto either side of her, forcing him to stay above her instead of collapsing right on her. Oh, how bad it looked to an outsider. "You're drunk as shit," he reminded, whether it was to himself or to her was unknown.

Though, Mari responded anyways. "And you're too gorgeous to resist." She declared, a laugh escaping her mouth as the red flush on her face grew stronger. There was a knock on the door and Hongjoong immediately threw himself away from her. Startled by the sudden interruption. The door opened just as he landed on the floor, revealing a wide-eyed and worried boy. He was completely disheveled like he had been running from point a to point b. There were various scratch marks scattered all over his skin and he was bleeding from a cut near his eye, but he didn't seem to care.

"Mari! God, I'm so sorry I shouldn't have left you alone," He apologized, quickly rushing towards the drunk girl's side. Seonghwa and Mingi appeared in the door frame a few moments after, huffing and puffing like they had chanced him down. Mari whined when she saw who had come to get her, refusing to be taken home by him. She was practically throwing a temper tantrum, every time he tried to force her up. "Come on Mari, we've got to go. I'm going to get in so much trouble for ditching and leaving you alone... Ugh, I'm so sorry."

"That's Wooyoung," Seonghwa informed him, sitting down on the floor with him. They watched as the boy thanked the trio profusely, slinging Mari's arm around his so that he could take her home somehow. "He didn't hesitate when we said she needed to be picked up. Mingi was barely able to explain that her drink was spiked and she was drunk. He hung up almost right away even. What a good friend he is." Hongjoong nodded, watching as the two left the room almost as quickly as they came. Yeah, what a great friend he was indeed.


	12. Lost Goodbyes

"Fuck!" Mari yelled, hitting the ground with a thud. She let out a distressed groan, rubbing her back as she tried to soothe the pain. Though Wooyoung stood tall and proud in front of her, covering up a nasty bruise that Mari had left on his cheek. It didn't stop the cocky smirk that grew on his face as he crouched down next to her, rubbing his win in her face. She shot him a sharp glare, clearly letting him get to her. Mari was strong, yes, but Wooyoung was just another breed. Ever since he joined the Seo Faction he continued to increase his strength with every passing day. Though she took her chance to outsmart him when his guard was down. 

"Cocky bastard," Mari mumbled as she grabbed his arm, making it the diversion. Wooyoung was only seconds away from snatching his arm away when she used her other hand grab his leg. His face was plastered with pure confusion as she pulled his legs from under him, causing him to stumble onto three ground himself. The girl got to her feet before he did, and placed a foot on his chest with all of her weight on it. This would only work for a little while to keep him down. Mari wasn't really the heaviest of the bunch. Nor was she the lightest. "I'm starting to think you're just letting me do this to accept your apology." The boy gave her a sheepish smile at her statement, she was right.

By now, it's been an entire week since Mingi's party. And if she had to be completely honest with her, she didn't really remember anything from that day. Whether that was a bad thing or a blessing was currently undecided. All she could recall was when she had arrived at the party. When she was hanging around Jaerin, following her to the backyard. And Mari couldn't forget that god awful headache. Everything afterward was a complete and total blur. Though she did remember the middle of the night. She woke up to being carried on Wooyoung's back to Rolls-Royce that belonged to the consigliere. Quiet literally upon sight she started to complain about him leaving her alone so quickly.

But Mari didn't get very far with her complaining. Not when she felt like something horrible was going to come up from her stomach at any moment. All Wooyoung told her was that she had gotten intoxicated and Mingi had called him from her phone to take her home. She immediately assumed the worst when the words came out his mouth, assuming that the consigliere and her father would be sitting in the car waiting for her. Yet the man himself wasn't in the car, neither of them were. It was just Yeosang, sitting in the front seat with an escort diving it. The two had sworn secrecy to not tell her father anything that had happened. Though it's not like any of them really knew either.

That drive back to the manor wasn't the smoothest ride she had ever been on. Mari swore she might have vomited up whatever she drank at least five times, and she probably got it out all on the first try. She felt extremely embarrassed, especially to have Yeosang in the car with her to witness her moment of weakness. He didn't pay any mind to it though, simply letting Wooyoung take care of it. Thankfully her friend had seen her in worse situations and wasn't disgusted by her very vulnerable state. He rubbed her back to try and soothe the pain, asking Yeosang and his escort to stop at a corner store for medicine. Though by the time they got to the manor, she was fast asleep and getting ready for a terrible hangover the next day.

A laugh escaped his mouth, not even trying to throw Mari off of him. "Look, you got me. I'm letting you win how crazy is that." Wooyoung told her, batting his eyes patiently at her as a sign for her to get off of him. "It's been a whole week, Mari. I came to your rescue when you were drunk, took care of you when you were suffering from a hangover, and I've apologized over fifty times for leaving the way I did. I'm letting you win a sparring match even! What else do I need to do to make you accept it?" The girl snorted at his words, stepping off of him so that he could get up. Everything he was saying was true, but this was the second he had left her alone for the Underboss and something terrible happened. 

Wooyoung slowly rose back up as Mari crossed her arms in frustration. "How am I supposed to trust you when you put the Underboss on a higher pedestal than me? We're supposed to be best friends that follow each other to the ends of the Earth. I can save you from whatever punishment that old man decides to give— Wooyoung! Put me down!!" Her friend quickly scooped her up in his arms, slinging her over his shoulder like a duffle bag. Mari tried to force herself down, kicking around to make him uncomfortable. Yet he only laughed like a child, parading around the room as if she was some sort of treasure. "Do I have to call you like a dog? Down! Put me down! Wooyoung!"

He giggled obnoxiously, trying his best to contain himself. He held onto her tightly as she faced him, tempted to shake that grin right off of his face. "You can't tell me you don't like being tall do you?" The look on Mari's face made him explode into another fit of laughter, earning himself whiny pout of defiance. "Okay, okay. How about this? Let's make a deal. You accept my apology, and I'll let you create whatever nasty alcohol disaster as payback. Sounds good right?." Wooyoung proposed. His offer was god awfully tempting. She almost replied to his deal without hesitation. No, she did reply without hesitation.

"Alright, deal." Mari blurted. He was taken aback by how quickly she had answered but honestly did it really matter? It was like payback for leaving her alone at Mingi's party and all she had to do was say she accepted his apology? That was a perfect deal in Mari's book! She could already imagine what the drink would be. To anyone outside of their little friendship, they'd think she was planning on killing him. Mari knew that just because Wooyoung was her best friend, she wouldn't go easy on him. What type of person actually lets their friends off the hook and pass such a good opportunity like this? "Okay Woo, I accept your apology. Now put me down so we can get started."

"You didn't let me finish," He quickly said, trying to get all his words out before Mari went any further. She gave him a questionable expression, he wasn't done? It seemed like he was done. Yet the girl did cut him off rather fast with her reply, she was a bit too eager for her revenge. Though with a mischievous glint in his eyes, Mari wondered whether or not she should really be hearing him out now. "You have to give me a kiss while accepting my apology. Anywhere on this face and is all yours Mari, I'm down with wherever you decide to kiss." Wooyoung exclaimed, pointing to his face like it was his most prized possession.

Mari immediately retaliated, pinching his cheek with a sneer on his face. "Haha, very funny Wooyoung. Now let's go make that drink shall we?" She asked him, smiling innocently at him. Though the boy didn't put her down so that they could leave. In fact, he didn't even move. He was just staring at her with pure mischief and intent as he waited patiently for her to fulfill her part of the deal. Mari's eyes widened in shock as it finally clicked in her head. "Oh, You're being serious? What— I'm not gonna do that Wooyoung. Who do you take me for?" 

Wooyoung places her on the ground, flashing her a bright smile as he spoke. "I take you as my brash but smart friend who is willing to do one simple thing for me because I asked." When Mari didn't respond he quickly added, "It's not that difficult. You want to make me toxic drink that might possibly kill me right? It can a wholesome and nice peck on my forehead or cheek, or it can be sinful and right my lips. The choice is yours but I'm fine with either one." She rolled her eyes when Wooyoung leaned his head in, waiting for the kiss she was never going to give him.

Yet he seemed awfully set on receiving any sort of affection from her. All Mari wanted to do was make her friend chug an alcoholic drink, but it seemed like he wasn't going to let her do what she wanted. "Ugh! Fine. I'm going to make that drink knock you into the astral plane though." Wooyoung nodded his head, but it didn't seem like he was listening. She groaned at her friend sat there like a puppy waiting on its treat, excited yet refusing to move even an inch. She held his face in her hands, resisting the urge to flick his forehead as hard as possible. "You're unbelievable."

"And you're taking too long," Wooyoung warned, teasing the girl. She huffed as he started to walk towards her, making her back up to put space in between them. Though no matter how many steps she took back, her friend always closed the gap. Soon enough she was pressed up against the wall and Wooyoung was leaning over her. She was basically pinned up against the wall, and she didn't like the way this was going. "What? Is the big bad Mari scared? Do you think you're going to catch feelings? That's how stories go with best friends who have known each other for a long time you know."

"That's enough from you," Mari mumbled, balling her hand into a fist. Wooyoung gave her a confused expression before she sent him a blow to the stomach. The boy gasped, doubling over in pain and trying to cover his weak spot. She snorted at him as she flexed her fingers, her lunch could have been better than it was. It wouldn't leave a bruise-like the one on his cheek. "Why would you even try to do that? Are you stupid or something? Did San take the rest of your brain while he's on guarding duty?" She asked him, tapping her head as if to mimic that nothing was there.

She didn't even hear what he had to stay before the devil himself walked into the room. San peered around in search of the two before a bright smile appeared on his face. "Mari! Wooyoung! There you are! I've been looking all over for you!" He exclaimed, completely ignoring his aching friend on the ground. She returned the same smile he had given her as he practically skipped towards them, as light as a feather on his feet. It was good to see him up and running again without being stuck to her mother's side. "I've come to say goodbye! I didn't want to leave without you two before I left."

Wooyoung stood up once more, rubbing his stomach to soothe the pain as he clicked into the conversation. Both Mari and Wooyoung wore the same lost expressions as they let San's words sink into their minds. "Goodbye?" Wooyoung questioned, trying to connect the dots while he still had time. "What do you mean goodbye? Where are you going? I thought you were supposed to stay by the Boss's wife until she recovered?" Mari nodded her head to Wooyoung's statement. It didn't make sense, her father would never let her temporary guards leave completely until she was fully recovered.

San gave them his signature smile that only they got to see, giving off a reassuring aura. "The boss's wife practically begged him to let her go on a mission again. She was tired of being cooped up in the manor with nothing to do. Of course, he caved in. So we're going to see the Chinese triad and our allies in the Yakuza to try and create an even bigger alliance against the Kim Faction. They've already gotten the American Mafia on their side, and that's a lot of power we have to counteract." San informed them, shrugging his shoulders as he spoke. Of course, her mother was going to try and go on a mission, no one was going to stop her once she started feeling good.

"You've never been out of the country have you?"Mari asked him, her eyes widening at the sudden realization. "This is good for you, San! If this goes well you'll able to ascend the ranks no time. Since we already have the Yakuza on our side and... the boss's wife," She said carefully, trying not to let the word mother slip," everything will go well! I'm awfully proud and nothing has even happened yet. Good luck San, even though you probably won't need it." He smiled at her words, clearly soaking in all the encouragement she was giving him. He deserved it after all. With those two factors on his side, everything was going to be just fine.


	13. Panic Attack

Mari and Wooyoung needed San a lot more than they really knew. It had only been a day since San left with her mother to meet the Triad and Yakuza, but that was long enough for them. Sure they hadn't been around San when he was guarding her mother, but his presence was still in the manor. They could see him whenever the two wanted to. But by now the two were in the colorful city of Japan, or maybe in the traditional cities around Beijing. Wherever they were, San wasn't close enough for Mari and Wooyoung to see. 

"How long do you think that trip is gonna take?" Wooyoung asked his question slightly muffled by the pillow he had his head-on. He was sitting at the foot of Mari's bed, messing with her sheets as he tried to keep himself busy. The girl shrugged her shoulders, genuinely having no answers. Being a dealer for a mafia was no easy job. It could take days, weeks, or even months to get other mafia's to see their side of things. Even then, some mafia groups are very hard to appeal to, having dealers leaving with empty hands and no good news.

"Who knows. I know my mom is the best dealer this faction has ever seen but... I learned the Chinese Triad is hard to please." Mari responded, her eyes glued to her boring ceiling. Maybe she should hang or stick something up there to make it more appealing. Then again, she never really stared at the ceiling in boredom at that much. "Their current Underboss, Zhang Yixing, might as well just be their boss overall. He's got so much power not just in the Triad, but in China, it's almost unreal. He expects absolute perfection. It's probably why the Kim Faction never got to them in the first place."

Wooyoung nodded he listened to her words, a pout forming on his lips. "I hope San is okay. I miss him already." Mari hummed in agreement. The two looked absolutely pitiful, any person who might come by to see them would feel their gloomy aura just radiating off of them. "God we need to stop doing this. I can't remember the last time we've been this demotivated before? Does San really have that much of an effect on our lives?" The boy declared, turning over to get the girl's opinion. His determined expression dropped when Mari started drifting off into a short slumber.

He crawled onto the bed towards her, slapping her shoulder to wake her up. She hissed at the sudden ache, almost tumbling off the bed in retaliation. "What?" Mari asked him, rubbing her shoulder slightly. Though it took her a few seconds to process Wooyoung's words from earlier, she still replies to it. "Oh, yes. Yes, he does. San ties the whole trio together! Without his presence in the country, everything becomes boring! Food gets boring, pranks get boring, skipping school with each other gets boring, everything is boring without San!"

Don't get her wrong, Mari was ecstatic at San's chance of ascending the ranks. He was born into the Seo Faction, yet his parents weren't in a position of power like Yeosang and Mari's. He had to climb the ranks normally just like Wooyoung had to yet, he got no boost like her childhood friend did. He was truly working from the bottom and slowly reaching the top with his handwork and effort alone. San was only a few steps away from becoming the Underboss's potential successor. He'd be the first in his family to become one even. That's an accomplishment that Wooyoung and Mari wanted their friend to achieve.

They knew the Underboss had his eyes on San, the two of them always knew that. No matter how much Mari didn't respect him, she knew he was good. But he was getting old and becoming an easier target for others to take out. Since the Seo Faction relief heavily on not just their Boss but also their Underboss, a successor wasn't optional now. Especially when the Underboss had or has no children to take his place. San was the perfect fit as well. He's young, talented, born into the mafia, and the Seo Faction's own personal devil. The perfect person to catch the Underboss.

The only reason Wooyoung wasn't a candidate for the Underboss's successor is that her father already got his hands on him. Plus, his fierce loyalty and friendship towards Mari and Mari only made the Underboss think it'd be his downfall. The two snapped out of their somewhat of a daze to hear sudden knocking on her door. Which was odd. No one ever knocked on her door, usually, everyone just came in. She was fine with that, seeing as she was rarely ever doing anything "bad" in her room. Half the time she wasn't in her room. She was usually out and about either doing normal teen things with Wooyoung and San or on a mission.

"Come in?" She said though it sounded more like a question. Wooyoung sat up to look at the door, watching it slowly creaked open. It was almost as if the person behind it was hesitating whether to come in or not. "If you're knocking on this door, you either know who I am or you're extremely new to the mafia. It's best you come clean while you still can." Mari told them, crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes at the door. The door opened up a little bit more, finally revealing the mystery person behind it. "Kang Yeosang?"

"Is this a bad time?" He asked, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him. The boy seemed stiff, uncomfortable in Mari's room. Probably because he had never been inside before. The two of them shook their head in unison and he nodded his head, clearly at a loss for words. He wasn't emitting the same intimidating and powerful vibes he was the last time she had saw him. In fact, he seemed like he had jumped headfirst into this shy and soft demeanor. Completely hiding his terrifying persuasive ways under the big black sweater he donned. "I thought now would be an... okay time to talk about the thing."

The gears were slowly turning in Mari's head as stars slowly began to form in her eyes. She had totally forgotten about her goal in the first place, to show that she didn't need all the protection and benefits her father kept giving her. That she could be treated as an adult, not some horrified teenager with no knew what she was doing. Granted, she was doing a bad job of showing him what she could do on her own. She hadn't gone on a mission in what felt like forever but was probably only a few months. "I can't believe I forgot. I've been so wrapped up in everything else that I couldn't even remember my own goal."

"I can't forget. I'll be your consigliere one day." He shrugged, walking towards her bed and sitting on it with the two of them. Wooyoung and Mari grinned at each other as they made space for him, not wanting their only source of genuine to feel uncomfortable. Though matter what they did, he seemed as straight as log, never once relaxing in their presence. Mari couldn't tell whether or not he was nervous or if he was just genuinely like that all the time. "I tried to collect a bit of knowledge on all your father had done for you so far, which was a lot harder than expected. He really does keep you under wraps, doesn't he?"

She groaned at the thought, nodding her head in response. "Of course he does. If it wasn't for my mom trying to make me have a normal life outside of the mafia, I'd have heavier rules placed down on me. The only thing he has full control of is Wooyoung, seeing as he's my "bodyguard" or whatever. If anything happens to me on a mission or in life itself, it's perceived as Wooyoung's fault. Even if I was the reason it happened. It's completely unfair to me! It's half the reason we're hiding the fact that I snuck out of the manor that one night and got drunk." 

"Well, you're a very important asset for the faction." Yeosang pointed out, giving her a skeptical look. "You're the heir to the Seo Faction and one of the most competent soldiers we have to date if we aren't counting Wooyoung and Choi San. Losing you would throw this faction into absolute chaos when the time comes for someone to take your father's place. We may all loyal now, but traitors are everywhere no matter where you look. You're not at risk from just the outside world or even an opposing faction. You have to be careful of those who are around you. Even those you consider being your allies, your own faction." 

"That must be why he keeps you hidden, isn't?" Wooyoung suddenly intervened, turning to the girl in question. "He's worried that if at any given moment when he reveals his eighteen-year-old daughter, the next heir to the Seo Faction, might become a target. It's okay to be out and about as a soldier. Who really cares about the soldiers anyways, no one will pay much attention to you unless it's revealed that you have information. But this pure Seo bloodline can end with you if it really comes to that."

Mari opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She had nothing to counter their words with, what could she? They were right, she is important to the faction. And this empire of a mafia that those before her worked so hard to build up could come completely crashing down the moment Mari let her guard down. Her bloodline really did end with her, didn't it? "Well if I'm so important, why won't he even tell me that instead of shutting me out and treating me like a child instead of a person who has to lead an entire army of people one day?"

The two couldn't even react quick enough, not when an earsplitting scream echoed into Mari's room. It shook all three of them to the core, not expecting to hear such fear and horror in the scream. "What was that?" Wooyoung asked as they all turned to the door as if whatever was outside was going to come in. They turned quiet, hearing several footsteps run past the room in a frenzy. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. Mari quickly jumped off the bed, rushing towards the door without another second wasted, "Mari? Where are you going?" Her friend called after her, but she was already out the door before he could get a response.

As soon as she stepped out, she was met with a sight she had never been seen before. Mari's usually peaceful manor was suddenly exploding with life, panic, and fear bouncing off the walls. Several soldiers, she had never even seen before went rushing down the hallway, trying to communicate the problem but getting lost in the chaos. She followed after them, trying to get as much information as possible. Yet it was different, she couldn't understand a word they were saying. They were speaking a completely different language, so all she assumed was that they were soldiers from the Yakuza.

Following them lead her to the main lobby of the manor, where the giant staircases that led to the rest of the manor was. It was even more crowded in the main lobby than it was in the hallways. She could barely see a thing, everything was practically in a blur. With languages meshing together as well, Mari couldn't pick up on the important details she was missing out on. But then, it hit her. A stench, a terrible stench. The smell of blood and death was lingering the air, something she hadn't caught wind off in a long time. "What's happening? What's going on?"

Short afterwards, Wooyoung and Yeosang arrived at her side. Yeosang seemed uncomfortable, the number of people and chaos in the room seemed to intimidate him when he wasn't on guard. Mari instinctively grabbing his sweater sleeve, keeping him close to them while the soldiers rushed into the room without regard for anyone else. Wooyoung caught onto the aura that was surrounding them, the smell of misfortune hitting him the same way it did her. "Follow me," He told her, taking ahold of her hand and leading her through the closely-knit crowd. 

The three muttered apologizes for every soldier they pushed past, asking questions to try and receive any sort of information on what was going on. Every so often the trio was cut off by a soldier rushing out of the crowd with a first aid kit. Once and while they'd bring illegal doctors that the faction acquired, yet these doctors were only used for serious situations. What type of problem they encountered that they needed several of their doctors on the scene. Though after a few minutes of pushing through crowds of people, they came to an abrupt stop.

Mari opened her mouth to ask what was happening, they couldn't stop now. Not when they had Yeosang with them and were so close to breaking the edge of the crowd. Yet Wooyoung didn't even give her a chance to speak, turning around almost immediately and forcing Mari into a hug. He wrapped her arms around her protectively, refusing to move and blocking her line of sight. "Wooyoung what are you doing?" She asked him, pushing against his body to try and move him out of the way. But that only made his grip on her even right. "Wooyoung, move."

"Don't look," Was all that escaped his mouth, the word that triggered his sudden trembling. "Don't look, don't look, don't look. Please, don't look." He begged her. Mari struggling right get herself away from him, trying her best to push him off her. Yet Wooyoung refused, she had never seen him try so hard to stop Mari from doing something. This might have been one of the first times he's even pleaded with her to stop. "Mari, please," a voice crack was evident in his voice, "I'm begging you, I don't care how many times I have to say it. Don't look."

She stood there, contemplating on what she was doing to do. With a deep sigh, the girl nodded, caving into Wooyoung's wants. "Okay, I won't look." She reassured him. He seemed skeptical, but the number of emotions that were bubbling in his head made him believe it. Yet the moment he loosened his grip. Mari slipped away from him and ran right into the fray. Both of the boys called after her, telling her to stop before anything could happen. But their calls didn't reach her. But something did, something she never thought she'd imagine.

The stench of death hit her hard as soon as she broke the crowd, her dash faltering greatly before she came to a complete stop. In front of her laid a beaten and blood group of men, barely clinging onto consciousness or even life itself. The ground was cover in the crimson liquid that oozed out of each and every one of them, creating abstract art on the floor. This wasn't just any group of men, no, this was the group sent to meet the Triad and the Yakuza. This was the group her mother and San had left with. She turned to the left, spotting several doctors desperately trying to save a young man that got the worst injuries of the survivors. And the Underboss was crouching right next to him.

She stared with a horrified expression in her eyes before Wooyoung's voice suddenly echoed through the room, the loudest voice despite how noisy it was. Mari had only heard the amount of devastation in his voice once before. And that's when he had lost a family member. "San!" With nothing holding him back anymore, her friend rushing to the said boy's side, pure panic filling his entire body. Mari followed after almost immediately, comforting her friends as soon as the weight of the situation dawned on her. "San, stay with us alright? Please, you can't just drop out on us like this, you were so close!"

The beaten and blood boy cracked a weak smile, looking as though he wanted to crack a joke on how soft Wooyoung had got in just a single day. Yet he let out an agonizing yelp of pain as the doctored that surrounded him tried to fix his wounds, desperately trying to save him while they had the chance. "San, everything's going to be okay. I promise I'll find out who did this to you and give them hell. I swear on my life I won't let them get away with this," Mari told him, grabbing his face and forcing him to look at her. San looked like he wanted to laugh, he so desperately looked like he wanted to laugh. Yet all that came out of his mouth was blood. 

Her head immediately snapped up, anger festering inside of her as she looked around for her father. She wanted an explanation, and she wanted one now. Who dared to try and harm the Seo Faction's best and most promising soldier? Who dared to try and harm one of her closest friends, one of the closest people she could have to keep her grip on reality. Mari spotted her father on the side of the space the crowd had created. He standing above a body that no doctor dared to even look at, staring down on it with an expression she couldn't read. "Who did this?" Mari asked as she marched towards him, trying her best to try and not take her anger out on him, "You let this mission go through. Who hurt them?"

Yet by the time she had reached him, he fell to his knees. It took Mari by surprise, shocking her so much that it blew out her wild candle flame inside of her. Her father slowly took the body in his arms, his entire body beginning to shake uncontrollably as he spoke. "I knew I shouldn't have let you go. I knew it was too dangerous for you to go. They were still after you weren't they? And I let you go. You didn't deserve me. You didn't deserve this." He spoke, his voice suddenly soft with an emotion she had never seen her father possess.

Mari crept around him, only to be met with the icy cold tears her father allowed to spill. Her breath hitched at the sight of her mother in his arms: eyes closed, a slitted throat, and a gunshot wound straight through the chest. Her clothes were stained with her own crimson blood scattered around her body like leaves in the wind. "No, is this... Is this some sick joke? This is a joke, you're joking." Mari stuttered, dropping down to them as grabbing her mother's hands. Unfortunately for her, they were unnaturally ice cold. A kind of cold only the deceased could achieve.

"This isn't fair, this isn't fair. I didn't even say goodbye. Please tell me you're joking, you're playing, right? This is all fake, you're just going to open your eyes, right? Right?!" Mari blurted out, tears streaming down her as she shook her mother's hand. "This is someone else, this isn't my mom. My mom is still alive this isn't her!" She started hyperventilating, the situation donning upon her much faster than she'd like to accept. She was shaking uncontrollably, unable to force herself to stop as her mind suddenly focused on one escape.

She let go of her mother's hand, watching it lifeless drop to the floor like a doll. Mari was choked up, she was frightened, she didn't want to accept the reality of what was happening. "Mari—" Her father began, holding his dead wife as he suddenly addressed his daughter. But he was too late. The girl fled the scene, fight or flight kicking in a little later than it should have. She needed a moment to herself, there was too much going on around her. The death of her mother, San's injuries, and the deafening loud room wasn't a good mix for her. So Mari ran, she ran out of the manor as fast as her legs could take her.


	14. My Sun, My Moon, My Stars

When the girl had left the manor, the afternoon was upon her. The sky was turning into its natural painting of orange and yellows as the sun slowly fell into its slumber. It's a shame how she didn't really pay attention to the wonder that Mother Nature was presenting her, but she was distracted. Mari was fleeing from problems as fast as her legs decided to take her and her eyes were being blinded with hot tears that threatened to fall. Despite the clear skies that hung above her, there was a storm of emotions and thoughts in her head that she just couldn't get rid of. 

Hence her running, desperately hoping that the farther she got from the source of the problem, the clearer her mind would become. By the time she had finally given her legs a break, the dark blue night was hovering over her. The stars were shining just a bit brighter than before, and the moon was the only thing accompanying her on her flee. Mari's knees had hit the concrete sidewalk hard, bruising them a little harshly on contact. She didn't even notice though, not when her body was releasing all sorts of emotions she didn't even know she was capable of. 

With nobody around to within it, she broke down. The small little droplets of tears that were spilling while she was running had suddenly come out her eyes like a flood. She sat there on the sidewalk, sobbing her little heart out without hesitation. Mari unintentionally was handing herself and feelings to bystanders on a silver platter. She tried to hide just in case anyone was around, dropping her head into her arms and using her hair to hide her face. But it wasn't going to help Mari when she was having trouble catching her own breath in the middle of her weeps, making her crying noisy and bothersome. Thankfully, it was the middle of the night.

Somehow, someway, she found herself stumbling towards a children's playground. It had all the classic playground equipment: swings, slides, etc. all of it was going unused, seeing as the target demographic should be inside and sleeping at night time hours. Mari didn't know what compelled her to, but she ended up walking towards it, using as her temporary hideaway from the public. People usually steered clear of playgrounds at night, fearing the eerie and scary horrors it radiated around that time. But, to Mari, it simply was illuminated by the night lights, making it look more like heaven than anywhere else she passed by.

So Mari sat in the tunnel tube of a children's playground, her legs pulled up close to her as she stared at the small window that was built into its plastic walls. She had no clue how she was able to fit inside, these tunnels were supposed to be for children in elementary and below. Those are all relatively small people that can easily slip through things. Mari was an eighteen-year-old girl who had reached the average of a woman by now. Climbing inside should have felt impossible, but she was able to get inside anyways.

She had been sitting in the tube for a while now, she had lost track of exactly how long it had been. It wasn't like Mari was really paying attention to the time though, she was too busy wallowing in her thoughts and trying to pull herself out of the vulnerable state she was in. One part of her was furious, having acknowledged the situation and wanting to jump up and take action right at that second. Yet another part of her was tugging Mari down, almost forcing her to stay in the mood she was in. Both sides were clashes furiously, and the only product of it was fiercely hot tears that ran down her cheeks.

Yet before they could even fall, she heard the rumbling of some sort, slowly getting louder as it inched closer to her location. It sounded like the engine of a vehicle, rushing to its next destination as fast as it could. Mari rubbed her eyes aggressively, trying to get rid of the tear stains and the droplets as she peered out the small window in the tube. She could barely see, the built-in window just too small to give her a good view of what was going on. All she saw was a motorcycle screeching against the asphalt road, attempting a wild turn that would be hard to pull off. It quickly zoomed out of her line of sight, but not long after did she hear metal clash with metal and a heavy thud on the ground.

Out of a sudden impulse and panic, Mari struggled to climb out of the tube to find the stranger. The crash was loud, and it didn't sound like it was too nice to the rider on the bike. She stumbled out of the playground toy, hitting her head on the exit as she rushed to get out. The girl winced at the pain, rubbing her head softly as she stood upon the lookout. Her eyes trailed off to the sidewalk, where the fallen motorcycle laid and its rider. She heard their barely verbal groans as they struggled to get off the ground, trying to push their body to move as fast as their mind was running.

She opened her mouth to call out to them, trying to make sure the stranger didn't suffer any major injuries. Though Mari placed a hand over her mouth before she could say anything, her eyes widening in pure shock and tried to not give herself away. The stranger practically ripped their helmet off, revealing the awfully familiar blue-headed boy she knew all too well at this point. Hongjoong's face was littered with cuts and scratches, maybe a bit of blood trickling down a cut on his eyebrow. He hissed as he took off one of the leather gloves on his left hand, showing off a fresh new and ugly bruise on the side of it. 

"Are you fucking crazy?! Again?" She couldn't help but yell, jumping up from her hiding spot. This was the second time she had encountered him while he was injured in some way, shape or form. She feared that it might become a terrible habit of his, and Mari wanted nothing to do with it. Hongjoong jumped from her sudden scolding, clearly, he had never realized she was there. The two didn't have time for much conversation though, not when another rumble of a vehicle could be heard approaching them from a distance. Both teens turned their heads towards noises, confusing donning her face while horror donned Hongjoong's. "What was that?"

"Mari, get down! Or hide somewhere, right now!" He exclaimed, avoiding her question entirely as he tried to shoo her into her hiding place. She shot him a questioning glance, clearly not understanding what the problem was. It didn't seem like Hongjoong was going to give her answer though, in his disheveled and panicked state. It felt unreal to see him so freaked out and worried, running his hands through his hair like crazy as if that was going to ease his nerves. "Please, princess? I'll tell you everything in a second, I just don't want you to be involved in my mess." 

He climbed up the ladder to the lookout, meeting her on the playground set and staring at her with pleading eyes. "Hongjoong what's—" she began, but didn't get a chance to finish her sentence. He placed his hand over her mouth, cutting off any speech for his sake. His eyes darted from the tube to her and gave her an apologetic smile as he shoved her right back where she came from. "Hey!" She managed to screech as she tumbled right back into her hiding spot. She didn't even have time to process all that was happening around her when Hongjoong hopped right inside of it with her. There was definitely not enough space for the two of them to be cramped in there together. 

They were two nearly grown high school students struggling to fit in a tiny playground tube for elementary schoolers. She would have kicked him off of her if she had been given the space to do so, but Mari could barely even move from underneath Hongjoong. "Get off of me." She hissed, reaching her hands up to try and shove him out of the tube. If he was looking for some sort of hiding place, he'd have to try somewhere else. This playground was her safe haven, not his! Yet before her hands could even reach his chest, he grabbed her wrist with lightning-like speed and restrained her movements. "Let go—"

"Have you been crying?" He asked her, completely out of the blue. Mari literally froze in place at his words, the situation they were both in crashing down on her harder than it should have been. She was crying, though she thought it wasn't obvious enough for anyone to notice. Especially not in the middle of the night with a single street lamp illuminated the playground and it's accompanying sidewalk. Unless her eyes were rosy red from her tears. His now blue hair hung in front of his face, failing to mask the sheer amount of worry that was pouring out of his expression. "Mari... are you okay? Did something happen?" 

She opened her mouth to talk, to let some excuse tumble out of her mouth so that she wouldn't have to tell the truth. Yet her quick thinking was failing her as if Hongjoong had triggered her reality to come back running back to her with sharp claws around her neck. "I...," Mari mumbled, tears threatening to well up in her eyes once more. Not now when Hongjoong, the last person she'd want to see how fragile she had become, was right in front of her. "Its complicated Hongjoong, can we please not talk about this now?." 

He didn't even have time to reply to her, no matter how much he wanted to. The two could hear the loud screeching of tires rubbing against the asphalt road, not long after it was followed by the slamming of a car door as well. Hongjoong pressed himself against the side of the tube, trying his best not to make any movements that could the two away. Yet Mari could tell his body was shaking just slightly as if he was trying to hold in any sort of fear or anger within him. She peered closely at his face, grabbing it with her own hands and looking at the scratches he has sustained. He was littered with small scars and scratches, a bruised lip with blood trickling now his mouth, and nasty bleeding scar right on his left eyebrow.

The two of them could hear footsteps in the grass approaching as if the stranger was suspicious of their hiding place. Mari cautiously wiped the blood of the scar, earning a wince from Hongjoong and causing more blood to trickle down from his wound. "I know you're there," a voice spoke, sending a shiver down Mari's spine. The owner of the voice seemed cold like a winter storm, their voice refusing to present any sort of emotion to them. "There's no use in hiding. Your motorcycle is laying out for all to see." They told him, their words directed towards Hongjoong.

There was a lingering silence between them, both parties wanting to see who would make a move first. Hongjoong had attempted to give himself up, but Mari grabbed his shirt collar to keep him right where he was. She wasn't letting me go, not to some stranger that seemed to be the cause of the injuries. Mari may not have known Hongjoong for long, but she wasn't that big of a jerk to let someone run off into unknown danger. There was a deep sigh from the stranger that was trying to coax Hongjoong into coming with them, running their nails across the plastic tube to create a disarming noise. 

"You can stay out for as long as you'd like. You've done it millions of times before I'm sure. But at the end of the day, you'll have to come home at one point. You can't bear to live without your family." The stranger spoke, walking away from the playground that the two just barely hid in. They practically held their breath as they waited for the stranger to leave. When he was far enough away from the playground. The two crowded around the small window built into the tube, only to catch the closing of a white Tesla door. They couldn't see into the car, it was too far away for them to see and the windows seemed like they were heavily tinted.

As soon as the car had pulled away from the playground, Mari turned to Hongjoong with neck-breaking speed. "Did they do that to you?" She asked him, catching the blue-haired boy completely off guard. He seemed confused by what she said so Mari graciously repeated her words. "Did that... stranger... do that to you? The injuries I mean. The last time you got hurt, you said you were jumped for trying to get your bike back. This guy doesn't seem entirely new to you... like he's apart of your family or something." She clarified, unable to take her eyes off of the scar on his eyebrow that refused to stop bleeding.

Hongjoong shrugged, trying to wipe off any blood that was leftover. "Not really. He's just my dad's... secretary I guess. He's supposed to be looking after me but I keep leaving without anyone knowing. He's a pain in the ass and likes to come searching for me when I'm alone with my usual friends beside me." He replied, dodging Mari's questions about his injuries like an oncoming bullet. Before she had a chance to get the answer out of him, he grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to make eye contact with him. "What about you though? Who made you cry? Tell me their name, address, and phone number and I'll kill them."

Mari snorted, a low laugh escaping her mouth but it wasn't enough to make the storm clouds in her head go away. "Like I said, it's complicated. No one specifically made me feel the way I do. It's that... stuff happened at home. And I ran away from it. Can you believe this is the first time I've ever cried? This is a humiliating feeling really." She suddenly blurted, talking to him as if he had been a close friend of hers for years. It was weird how she had gone from loathing him to feeling like his presence belonged with hers.

Hongjoong nodded at her words, both of them falling silent as they were stuck in thought. The two of them were running away from something or someone, trying to escape problems they weren't ready to tackle. Yet somehow, no matter how different the situations were, they had ended up finding each other again. Whether it was intentional by fate or a complete coincidence, they'd never really know. "You wanna run away from our problems, princess? But like, together this time, I feel like we both need to just have some fun for once. My week has been hell, yours must have been hell after Mingi's party, so let's do something stupid. But fun, of course."

She raised an eyebrow as she carefully listened to his words. Mingi's party? How did he know she was there. Mari had never seen him to her knowledge, but she did blackout at one point. So... something must have happened at that party for him to bring that up. But she pushed past it, not wanting to destroy her brain over anything. "Alright then, wannabe badboy. What do you have in mind? There's only so much I can mentally prepare myself to do in the dead of the night, I will reject you if you say something stupid." He took her words into consideration, thinking carefully about what would come out of his mouth next.

"You've never had a tattoo before, have you? How do you feel about that?" Hongjoong asked her, rolling up his jacket sleeves to show off his own collection of ink on his skin. He had a sleeve of tattoos on his left arm, but the right was almost completely bare. It was a blank slate for anything to be written on it. "I know a guy that's still open around this time because he never sleeps, he usually does the ones I have now. If you're down, we could go get you you're first after I slap a bandaid on myself? I'll even match with you so you won't have to go through it alone either. Does that sound like a plan?"

Mari stares at his arms before looking down at her own, the clear difference between an almost totally painted canvas versus a blank one. Her father would kill her for going out with someone he didn't know and getting a tattoo. And without his permission no less. But... he was rather distracted right now. Everyone was distracted right now, and she needed one too to get through the rest of the night. "You know what, yeah. That does sound like a plan. As long as I get to pick what goes on my body though, I don't want to die of whatever pain you'd put me through." Hongjoong's mouth broke into a giddy smile as an excited laugh burst from him. Maybe this was the best decision she could have made all day.


	15. Seo’s Lament

Mari couldn't stop looking at the fresh ink on her skin, admiring the small yet simple design on her wrist. It wasn't anything wild and extravagant like the many tattoos that donned Hongjoong's skin, but it was just perfect for her. The tattoo was a small sun, moon, and stars, with Mari's moon being colored in black. She had chosen it herself, partly because she didn't know exactly what she wanted to get. She knew that tattoos were very hard to remove, seeing as they were meant to be permanent. So she blurted out the first thing that came to mind. 

Hongjoong sat down next to her, a huge grin on his face as he showed her his own wrist. He had gotten a new tattoo as well, one that matched Mari's since that's what he had agreed to. The only difference between the two was that his sun was colored in black. "Congratulations, you've completed step one of rebellion. You've officially joined the crew." He joked, his laugh echoing through the almost empty parlor. He had gotten their matching tattoo on his right arm, the canvas that had yet to be painted on yet. 

"Are you sure that's okay? I mean, you were probably saving that arm for something more... intricate weren't you?" Mari asked, her eyes stuck on the tattoo she had suggested that tainted his skin. Hongjoong gave her a questioning glance, clearly not understanding exactly what she meant. The girl cleared her throat, trying to find the exact words she was trying to say. "Well... tattoos are supposed to have meaning right? The whole sun, moon, stars thing I came up with doesn't really... meet that standard."

"Who came up with that lame rule?" Hongjoong snorted, shoving his hands in his pockets as they walked up a grassy slope, his motorcycle long forgotten. After leaving the tattoo studio, he had quickly rushed her onto his motorcycle and brought her... somewhere. They were on the very edge of a busy street, his motorcycle left at the bottom of the slope somewhere in the grass. They were heading up the hill, but to what, Mari didn't know. The cars were just getting smaller and smaller the higher they climbed. "Tattoos don't need to have meaning, as long as you like it then that's all matters."

Mari's unintentionally pout made way on her face, she couldn't even wipe it off before Hongjoong had seen her. The boy laughed at her as he stopped in his tracks, crossing his arms as he spoke to her in a teasing tone, "If you want it to have a meaning you could always come up with one later? Yunho and Seonghwa like to come up with dumb stories that could have made me subconsciously get all the ones I have. Plus, I think your tattoo is a nice addition to my collection anyways, princess. So you have no need to worry about it."

"You flatter me," She mocked him, clearly not taking his words to heart. Hongjoong was... an odd one if she had to be honest. He tried his absolute hardest to keep up his hostile demeanor in terms of appearances and actions. Leather jackets, a million piercing tattoos, dyed hair, motorcycles, and sneaking out at night behind adult's back. He looked like the epitome of a reckless, selfish teenager: a badboy. And yet here he was, hanging out with Mari in the middle of the night and concerned over her wellbeing. What did she do to make him act this way? All she had done was tease him whenever she got the chance. "Alright lover boy, will you finally tell me where you're taking me?"

"New nickname?" Hongjoong beamed, his old nickname suddenly long forgotten. It wasn't a good one, but definitely better than being called wannabe badboy. "What an upgrade! What's next, you're going to call me prince? I wouldn't mind it, being the prince to your princess." Mari practically gaged at his awfully cheesy words. Prince? Mari would never let him get the chance. She'd rather die than call Hongjoong a prince. The blue-haired boy gave her a mischievous smirk as he poked fun at her. "What? You don't like me calling you princess still? What else could I call you then? My treasure? My precious? My b—"

"Hongjoong, no." Mari snapped. If she didn't stop him soon enough she'd be as red as a rose, the endearing nicknames being awfully effective on her. She's never met someone who was that persistent to give her a nickname. Wooyoung and San tried, but they respected her boundaries a lot more then than Hongjoong did. He seemed to continuously try and push her buttons, no matter how hard she tried to ignore them. "I said where are we going. Don't change the subject again." She told him, trying to steer them right back on track.

Hongjoong looked satisfied with the response she gave him. "You didn't say no to princess." Mari opened her mouth to protest, but the boy cut her off anyways. He didn't even give her the chance to fend for herself against his argument. "I'm just playing with you princess, no need to get all defensive. Besides, I like calling you my princess anyways." He told her, blinking his eyes innocently at her. Mari rolled her at him, tempted to tease him once more. But then started speaking again. "Ah! We're here!"

"Where is... here?" She asked him, walking a little faster to catch up with him. The girl stopped right to him as she looked forward, confusion evident on her face. They had stopped at a footbridge, a bridge that allowed pedestrians to cross a busy street without actually walking out into it. Under the bridge was the heavy traffic below them, the car lights taking the form of stars. Hongjoong went first, taking the daring step of walking over it with. It seemed as though he had no thoughts of worries crossing it, trusting its stability despite its height. 

"I found this place when I was with Seonghwa," he told her, skipping along the bridge in a wishful manner. A smile appeared on his face as he relived the memory, leaning over the railing to see the cars. "I had crashed my motorcycle on that side of the road, and I was too anxious to go home and get in trouble. So Seonghwa saw this place up here and calmed me down here. Ever since then, this has been a sort of haven to get myself together. It's been... a while since I've been here."

Mari nodded, standing on the very edge of the hill before the bridge began. "That's nice but... why bring me here?" She asked him, crossing her arms as she cautiously leaned over the edge to look down at the cars passing by. She wasn't scared, why would she be scared? She had faced more dangerous things than a footbridge! Mari was just apprehensive, of course, she was apprehensive. She had never done such a thing before. Never in her life had she decided she was going to walk on a tall bridge that was right over busy traffic.

Hongjoong turned around on his short stroll, laughing at her situation. "Come on princess! Nothing to be afraid of!" Mari opened her mouth to snap at him, ready to destroy him with a strong remark. Though the blue-headed boy grabbed her hands and pulled her onto the footbridge, causing her to let out a terrified scream as they walked across the metal bridge. "Aw, princess! You scared of heights?" He teased her, pulling her farther and farther into the bridge.

"I am not scared of heights!" She protested, though immediately regretting her actions. Hongjoong took her words as a challenge, letting go of her hands and leaving her alone where she stood. Mari, too stubborn for her own health, didn't say anything. There were very few things Mari was scared of, thanks to her family background raising her to be as fearless as possible. But this just seemed to be one of those things she never knew she had to overcome.

"I'm not scared, I'm not scared," She chanted, grabbing onto the railing with an iron grip. Mari closed her eyes shut, sliding down onto the ground as she kept chanting the mantra to herself. Again, she was forced to show vulnerable to the person she wished never knew the secrets she was handing out on a silver platter. It's like her body just wanted Hongjoong to know her weaknesses. "I'm not scared... I can't be scared, I have other things to worry about I can't be scared of this!"

"Woah, woah, princess! Calm down, I'm sorry," Hongjoong apologized, noticing Mari was on the verge of a mental breakdown. She's already had one tonight so it wouldn't be the first. The boy's earrings jingled as he darted back over to her, taking her by the hands again so that there was a presence of someone else with her. "Princess, are you sure you're okay? You don't seem like yourself."

"I'm fine! I'm perfectly fine, stop asking already!" She yelled at him, a sudden burst of frustration escaping her. He was taken aback by her anger, yet refusing to even let go of her no matter how much she decided to lash out. "Stop with the stupid nicknames, stop asking me questions, just stop it! Stop caring so much about someone you barely know!" Mari abruptly put her fit to a halt, noticing she was in solid ground again.

Despite her lashing out at him, Hongjoong had brought her all the way back to the slope and away from the bridge. He smiled at her as if she wasn't just yelling at him like he was the root of all her problems. "We're back the land again! See? Moving on the bridge wasn't so bad, was it? Now, are you ready to talk about it?" Mari stood there and stared at him, barely noticing he hadn't taken his own hands away from hers yet.

"Why are you so nice to me?" Mari asked him as he sat down on the ground, letting go of her to sprawl out and get comfy. He only hummed in response to her question, causing Mari to ask it once more. "Hongjoong, why are you so nice to me? I've been mean you and I've snapped at you like you aren't even a person. Do I have something you want? What do you want from me? I'll give it to you right now so you can leave me alone,"

"Your friendship is what I want," He answered easily, a smile creeping up on the boy's face. He patted the ground next to him, encouraging her to come and lay with him. "And the fact that you look like you need some consolation. I may look like a bitch, but I'm not one. It's very obvious that you have mixed feelings right now, but I think it's better if I just wait for you to open to me instead of forcing it out of you. You're not Mingi after all."

Mari fiddled with her hands, glancing back at the footbridge he had pulled her away from. With a reluctant huff, she sat down in the grass with him, making sure her eyes were on the sky instead of the stupid grin on Hongjoong's face. Mari knew she had to talk about her problems at one point, keeping her feelings bottled up wouldn't be very good for herself or the faction. She couldn't open up to San, she most definitely knew Wooyoung would be too preoccupied at the moment, and she was just getting to know Yeosang.

Either way, all three of them were apart of the double life she had to keep a secret. She needed an outside look on her problems. At the moment, Hongjoong was the only person around to talk to about them. Yet talking about it would be another vulnerability revealed to him. Did she really want to test her limits again? "Princess, look! A shooting star! You know what those are right? You know you're supposed to make a wish on those right?"

She glared down at the blue-headed boy, who gave her a bright smile in return. Was she really about to get consolation from him? "Hurry up and make a wish before it goes away. I've already made mine. You never know how much a shooting star can help you." Hongjoong told her, very adamant about getting her to make a wish. She wasn't some five-year-old child, she didn't need to make unfulfilled wishes on stars.

Yet, she still did either way. The girl took a deep breath and made a quick wish, letting her thoughts roam the endless depths of her mind. There were so many things she hoped that would be fixed, yet in this minuscule, she could only make one. Mari let herself fall back onto the ground, staring at the sky with as much wonder as Hongjoong did. "I'm sorry Hongjoong. I've... I've got a lot going on right now. My life just got so hectic so fast and I'm pretty sure you don't want to hear it all."

Hongjoong shot his head up, the amount of wonder and excitement in his eyes suddenly directed onto her. "No please, tell it all to me. I'm all ears all the time, you don't need to worry about me being bored. Seonghwa always listens to me ramble about my life, so this is like... me taking what he says into account and passing it onto someone." He eagerly told her, trying not to make her regret her decisions. Mari tried to conceal the sudden urge to laugh, finding his eagerness a lot more amusing than it should be. How could this wannabe badboy become an innocent puppy so quickly?

"I promise, Mari," he said, catching her off guard for a second. He had said her name before, in fact, it was just earlier today that he had spoken it. But something about the way Hongjoong was talking now was just... so different from before. "Everything you say to me will be only between you and me, I won't share it with a single soul. And whenever you want to talk about something that's bothering you, just meet me at this footbridge and we'll just talk. That's what friends are for... right?" Hongjoong asked her and Mari smiled at him, a genuine smile in fact. He was right. That's what friends are for.


	16. My Name Is

"Where are we going?" Mari asked, tension building up inside of her. She was riding in the back of Hongjoong's motorcycle, her nails practically digging into the leather jacket that laid on his shoulders as they slowly cruised through the broken streets of a dull neighborhood. The trees were bare despite it not being winter, not a single leaf dared to stay attached to its branches. The houses around them looked as though they had been beaten and broken into, its inhabitants abandoning what once held a busy household. "This looks like something straight out of a horror movie."

Hongjoong shrugged his shoulders, not finding the strength to argue with her. He was too focused on watching the scenery they were slowly rolling past with skeptical eyes. "This place has been this way since I was born. I heard from people that live around the area that it got caught in the middle of a turf war between two criminal groups. I have to assume it ended horribly for everyone who got involved, the criminal groups never came back and people feared being involved in another turf war. So they left." Mari nodded, trying to figure out if she knew anything about it.

It definitely sounded like something the Kim and Seo Faction would have done, as they were constantly butting heads years before she came into the picture. But she couldn't exactly pinpoint what would exactly be the cause for a turf war right in the middle of an innocent neighborhood. Maybe it wasn't really a turf war in the first place... an ambush instead maybe? The neighborhood they were in was a little close to the Seo's house of operations so maybe it was infiltration instead. Mari couldn't guess correctly if no one told her what happened in the past.

"We have to go this way though," Hongjoong informed her, revving up the bike to accelerate to faster speeds. "This is the quickest way to get back to that playground we started at without going through this god awful morning traffic. That is where you wanted me to drop you off at... right?" He asked her, the look on his face exposing his displeasure in leaving her somewhere that wasn't the doorstep of her actual home. Mari simply nodded her at his words as they began to zoom down the streets of the neighborhood. There was no way she was going to lead him into the heart of the Seo Faction's business.

Hongjoong would get mauled to death by the soldiers who protected the manor on a daily basis. Not only that, but her father would absolutely slaughter him. One for being a stranger to him, and two for keeping her out of the house for so long. Mari had stayed out the entire night, unlike what she originally planned. She wanted to go home as soon as twelve am had hit, but Hongjoong kept stringing her along elsewhere. In the end, the two of them had pulled an all-nighter, ranting to each other about the little things that bothered them and doing delinquent-esque things. She had completely forgotten about her father in the middle of it all.

That was technically though, to forget all the things that were bothering her and avoid the tragedy that had struck her faction. The mere thought of facing the music of her reality made her shake, so Hongjoong had become her distraction. Too good of a distraction if you asked her though. Mari had done countless things in one night, many of them being illegal and could possibly get her arrested. The obvious ones being stealing and vandalism. She was supposed to keep her public identity on the low, she was a member of the mafia and a high school student at the same time.

That's not the only thing she had done, however. While at the footbridge Mari basically had a mental breakdown on, she had venting as much as her mind would allow her to. Her problems flowing out of her mouth as if it was just a waterfall of worries. She had to be extra careful with everything she was saying as well. Mari couldn't count how many times she had almost said something she wasn't supposed to. Thankfully, her mind liked to double-check itself just before she spoke. Hongjoong was a surprisingly good listener. He'd hum softly to himself before he'd comment on something that seemed out of place in or he'd offer her small tips to help her take control of a situation. 

Mari felt slightly uncomfortable just talking about herself though. She had a lot of secrets that were ready to be thrown out there for everyone to see the more comfortable she got with Hongjoong's presence. So she tried to get the boy to talk about himself as well. He kept protesting against it, that he didn't need any consolation since he had Seonghwa by his side. Yet she was very persistent. She didn't want to seem selfish, no matter how annoying Hongjoong proved himself to be. So instead of something person, she asked about the lifestyle he has chosen for himself. The badboy demeanor he tried to uphold whenever she wasn't around. It seemed foolish to her when the attitude was hiding all the actually good things about him. 

The answer she had gotten wasn't any good either. He just flashed her a giggly smile while saying the eeriest of responses. "Some people just aren't worth my true self. Not just strangers, but family too." She would have tried to give him any sort of advice afterward, but he had already moved forward from what had been said. Hongjoong quickly progressed to why he and his trio of friends were the only ones deserving of his precious time. He then continued on with the idiotic reasoning behind his quickly formed bonds with the three boys as well. Hongjoong was an odd one, at the very least. So kind to her yet continues to shroud himself in mystery.

Suddenly the motorcycles began to slow down, but not because they were at their destination. In fact, Mari was almost one hundred percent they weren't even close to the playground set yet. They had suddenly stopped in the middle of the abandoned neighborhood as it began to be illuminated by the sun's light. "Shit," Hongjoong cursed, involuntarily parking his motorcycle on the sidewalk. "I guess I wasn't paying attention... I must have started running out of gas maybe an hour or so from now."

"Ha, stupid." Mari mocked, earning an annoyed smile from the biker. Though it's not like it didn't leave her worried. Not only did they run out of fuel in a creepy abandoned neighborhood, but they were also in mafia territory and Mari didn't know what mafia it belonged to. If it belonged to the Seo Faction Mari would be perfectly fine by the end of the day, though she couldn't say the same for Hongjoong. If it belonged to the Kim Faction, then they'd both be dead where they stood in a matter of hours. "No but seriously, what now?"

"We keep going while walking on foot," Hongjoong shrugged, not thinking much of the situation they were in. He slid off of the motorcycle with else, urging Mari to follow suit as he continued. "I'm pretty you want to go home now, right princess? I'll just leave my bike here and I'll take you back to the playground as we planned. And then I'll come right back and make the trek back home. It's as simple as that really." Mari's eyes widened at his solution, immediately thinking about all the bad things that could happen with his quick plan.

"You're just going to leave your bike here? In the middle of what feels like nowhere?" she asked him, her eyes darting from the boy to motorcycle several times over. Hongjoong thought about for a second before giving her a vigorous head nod, which clearly meant he was thinking at all. "Why don't you just... take the bike with you, even if the walk will be a little slower than you'd like. Normal people with common sense take their personal belongings with them when they're stuck somewhere. You know that, right?"

"I know. They do," Hongjoong replied as he shooed Mari off the bike. She scurried off the bike with a confused expression as he parked it against the curb, not even questioning his actions. "It doesn't really matter to me anyway. My parents don't like the fact that I have a motorcycle, I bring it to their house they'll probably throw it out whenever they get the chance. I usually leave it over Mingi's house since he's got such a big garage, but we're a little too far from his home to be doing that right now. I'm pretty sure our walk won't be that long, so leaving it here should be fine."

It sounded like this quick fix of his could fail at any moment. The streets they were on may look deserted, but it might not be the case. There could be people who were still around that didn't care whether they lived in the city or a rundown neighborhood. No matter where they went they were always looking for something to steal and sell for their own profit. Something like Hongjoong's shiny black motorcycle would definitely attract those who wanted to steal it. Yet when Mari gave him a clearly nervous look and hoping that he'd rethink his actions, nothing changed. He seemed confident that everything would be alright.

"Hongjoong you're a little too confident about leaving your motorcycle here," She began, all the possible bad consequences running through her mind. Though all those possibilities all ended with her promptly laughing at Hongjoong when she got the chance. "I mean, just actually use your brain for a second. You may think this place is completely abandoned but you don't know that! Anyone could be out here and leaving this expensive motorcycle would be a very, very bad idea. If something bad happens just know that I'll be—" Mari stopped in the middle of her sentence to find that, he wasn't with her anymore.

She turned around several times in search of Hongjoong, but he wasn't there. He literally just left her because she was taking too long talking. But that wasn't enough time for him to get completely out of her sight. Yet Hongjoong was nowhere to be found. He was gone. "This is not funny asshole," Mari fumed, crossing her arms in frustration. "I get it, I was talking too much. But now is not the time to be making stupid jokes like these. Especially not in this neighborhood." The girl complained.

Yet when no response came, she realized that it wasn't some sort of joke Hongjoong was trying to pull. Instinct and habit told her to reach for a weapon, to arm herself in case the worse was about to don upon her. But Mari didn't just carry around guns like a maniac! She had tried to separate her daily life from her life in the Seo Faction. Why would she ever need to carry a weapon on her if she was going to hang out with a friend? "Ah fuck it," She mumbled, ditching her spot by the motorcycle.

"Hey, lover boy! Scream in agony if you're near me!" She yelled as she began to dash down the street in search of him. Mari had begun searching her immediate surroundings like the abandoned houses and overgrown greenery that covered them. Hongjoong couldn't have gone too far, after all, she doesn't talk for that long. She hopped over shards of broken glass that stood in her way as she ran up to one of the doors, trying her best to swing it open with all her might. Though it seemed locked by its past owner, refusing to budge.

She pulled on the doorknob one last time, which was a bad decision on her part. The doorknob came clean off and sent her flying back due to her own force being used against her. Mari landed on the ground with a thud, scratching her forearm and hand on the glass pieces that were left behind. "Oh, you're kidding me right now." Mari frowned as she forced herself up, wincing as she stepped away from the glasses and proceeding to try and pick the shards out of her skin, she was definitely getting some sort of infection from it.

Mari repeated the same process at least four more times, minus the hurting herself part. Though she only got the same result each time. She couldn't get inside to even check. All the doors were locked and there wasn't going to be anyone to open them. A few times she has thought about just breaking in since no one would really be there to stop her, but she would achieve nothing from that. "Dammit Hongjoong, what the hell have you done?" Mari mumbled as she looked around the street for any more ideas. 

Thought just when she thought about giving up and leaving her newfound friend to die on his own, she heard a heavy thud on the ground and the rustling of bushes. It came from one of the houses that were basically engulfed with untended nature, becoming a literal greenhouse. Mari cursed under her breath as she stomped over to it. She had just come to the conclusion of helping with and attending Hongjoong's soon to be funeral. Why would she have to get a sign just before she decided to call it quits?

"If Hongjoong himself isn't dead by the time I find him, then he might have to go through hell twice." She said to herself, gathering enough courage to brave it through the nature taken house. Mari didn't think she had any known allergies to nature as a whole, but if she did this was not the way she wanted to find out. The girl squinted her eyes as she pushed the first layer of greenery away, only to be greeted my even more of it. She concealed an annoyed groan that wanted to escape her mouth as she whispered into the house, "Loverboy? You here?" 

She got no response and continued to tread through the plants, shoving them out her way as she tried to make out as much as possible. The greenery wasn't as thick as it looked from the outside, it was quite dense once she reached the inside of the house. The inside was rather big even, just littered with destruction and trash. She could barely tell whether the room she was in was supposed to be the living room or what once was a kitchen. The only thing that truly bothered her was how quiet it had gotten ever since she entered. Mari wasn't a child, she wasn't easily fooled by the horror movie tricks people try to play.

A gunshot went off in the abandoned building, the ringing of the shot lingering in her ears. As soon as the bullet had been fired she dashed towards an open door near the back, the only thing in the room that hadn't been destroyed. Mari nearly crashed straight into the wall as she skidded to a sudden stop, her body tensing up at the thought of a worse case scenario. "Hongjoong!" She practically screeched, remembering the fact that she didn't have a weapon on her. If she got jumped she was completely done for. She can fight one person at a time, not six. 

"Mari?!" Was the two responses she received upon screaming her lungs out, which took her by complete surprise. On the ground was Wooyoung, with a bloody lip and bruised cheek, his hands tightly gripped onto the shirt of his attacker. He looked like he was going to explode at any given second, his unfortunate dagger-like state now being directed at her. His attacker was even Hongjoong, who had him pinned to the ground and seemed as though he was just getting started with his ambush on her childhood friend. "Mari, what are you doing here?"

"Hongjoong, what the hell?" Mari hissed, quickly making her way towards the two. She immediately grabbed the biker and tugged him off of Wooyoung, no matter how hard he tried to resist. Her childhood friend snickered at the situation as she began to lecture him without any mercy. "Hongjoong you can't go around punching people you don't know! Especially if they're my friends. That's illegal you know! You've violated my friendship laws and we haven't even been friends for twenty-four hours." 

"That's your friend?!" He fussed, shrugging her off as he stood up off the ground. Wooyoung followed after, wiping the blood off his face with a smug expression. "Do your friends usually carry around guns like it's a toy? He could have killed me!" Wooyoung's expression quickly died into shock, getting exposed quicker than he had anticipated. Mari shot him an angered glare, wishing she could go off on him at that very second.

"I'm sorry, he's..." Mari mumbled, her eyes lingering on her friend as she gave him a hard stare. Wooyoung gave her a puppy-like smile, as if he was silently begging her not to explode. The girl took a deep breath, trying to control the festering frustrations inside her as she turned back to Hongjoong. "Unique. But now is a great time to introduce you to each other, right? Wooyoung, this is Hongjoong. You know... the motorcycle boy I talked about every so often? Hongjoong this is Wooyoung... my childhood friend."


	17. I Spy With My Eye

"Are you fucking stupid?!" Mari hissed, slapping Wooyoung's shoulder with as much strength as she could muster at the moment. The boy winced at her attack, even gaining a furiously bright red mark on his exposed arm. "I thought you had at least somewhat of a brain inside your head, it turns out you have none! What gave you the bright idea of bringing a gun out in public huh? You're a teenager Wooyoung, that's against the law when we're not with the faction!" The two were sitting in the comfort of the girl's room after returning back from the neighborhood she and Hongjoong had passed through. 

It was her fault, to be honest. She had done a lot of back talking about Hongjoong before to Wooyoung, who soaked up everything she said like a sponge. It was as if he held grudges against a person he had never truly met and let it all explode the moment he had a chance. Plus the fact that she did run away from the manor for an entire night and left her childhood friend worrying about her wellbeing after her little fiasco the day before. The most likely reason he was carrying a pistol with him in the first place was in case the Kim Faction decided to attack again.

Her newly found friend had let her go with Wooyoung back to her house, though it didn't come without excessive persuasion. He didn't like the fact that Mari would be going home with a feral teenaged boy who strapped with a weapon his side and nearly tried to kill him. While she understood his reasoning, Hongjoong couldn't take her home even if Wooyoung wasn't there. Due to her affiliation with the mafia, anyone outside of it would be carefully watched and targeted by the Seo Faction. She may want to throw the biker boy off a cliff most of the time, but she wouldn't wish that upon anyone.

So when Wooyoung brought her back, she had returned to speak to anyone that knew of her existence. She listened when the Underboss tried to appeal to her, didn't go check San to see how he was doing in his current condition, and refused to even make her way towards her father's office. Mari had only one set goal in her mind, and that was to pass out in the comfortable warm sheets of her bed. In fact, the girl had only woken up a few minutes ago. She didn't get home till late in the morning and didn't wake up till the middle of the afternoon.

"I had to bring something or someone with me!" Wooyoung shot back, rubbing his arm carefully in a soothing manner. "It's my job to protect you, you know that. It's been like this since we were kids. Most of the faction was fixated on the injured, what Kim Faction's next step might be, and how to counter it. Yeosang and Consigliere had left with the Underboss to round up the stranglers and create some type of needed peace in the chaos. San was taken somewhere that wasn't the bloodied ground to get the correct treatment he needed and your father..."

Mari didn't even realize she had caught her breath, her body refusing to release the air that so desperately wanted to escape her lungs. Wooyoung noticed this change in her demeanor, trying to find another way to phrase his words. "And your father... is dealing with your family business. So I had to come with a weapon on me, there was no backup I could possibly get in time to go searching for you. What if something happened? My fists alone wouldn't have been able to save you from an ambush, Mari."

"I was going to come back eventually," She replied, her fuming anger from early dying down. "In fact, you caught me at the moment I was returning even! We just had to take the long way back because Hongjoong wouldn't be able to step one foot on the Seo Faction's turf. I just didn't want to be here with this... this disgusting scent of despair and blood and death in the air. Especially knowing the fact that it came from one of my closest friends and my mother." It was pathetic of Mari really. She had run away from something she had faced every day, something she usually didn't even bat an eye too. The girl made an absolute fool of herself in front of a crowd even. It was absolutely pathetic of her.

"It's really screwed up, isn't it?" He asked her with wide eyes as if a light switch flipped on in his head. She gave him a curious look, not entirely sure what he meant by his statement. Screwed up as in terms of what the Kim Faction did or in terms of what the consequences have been for the Seo Faction. Wooyoung sat up as straight as a log as he began to ramble. "It's like the universe is forcing you to pay it forward, forcing you to pay with the life of another person. The Kim Faction targeted and killed my mother years ago and now they're retaliating once again by targeting and killing yours. Isn't that just screwed up."

What's screwed up about that statement was that Wooyoung had brought up that entire situation in the first place. Wooyoung used to have both parents by his side like any normal child should have, in fact, he was never involved with any of the mafia madness, to begin with. He was just as normal as Mari's mother wished she was. Then the Kim Faction ruined Wooyoung's perfect life he was living and forced him and his now absentee father to look to the Seo Faction for protection against it. Ever since then, it's just been a spiral downhill for him until he came to a sudden stop at the foot of her father.

"Yeah, that's screwed up as hell," Mari mumbled, resting her head on the backboard. There was an uncomfortable silence between the two, a type of silence they've never truly experienced with each other before. Usually, they were so close that nothing could make them feel out of place with each other. Yet with the knowledge that both of their lives were getting equally screwed up ever so slowly together, the two of them didn't know how to react properly. "Is he at least holding a funeral or something?"

"No," Wooyoung replied, his voice as cold as the weather that was transitioning into winter. She snapped to attention, her jaw-dropping at the answer he had given her. No funeral? For his deceased wife? For her dead mother? "I was there when he made the decision. Both the Underboss and Consigliere were practically begging him to rethink his decisions, she should have a memorial at least to honor her work in the Seo Faction. He just wouldn't budge, kept making the argument that they had more important things to tend to than plan a funeral."

"More important things to tend to?" Mari growled, practically fuming with anger at her father's decision. "Is he out of his mind? He wasn't the one who was injured in a straight-up ambush!" Wooyoung opened his mouth to retaliate, to try and calm her down before she did something she would regret. Unfortunately, Mari wasn't a coward that wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty when she needed to. Plus, the girl was absolutely furious. She sprung up from her place on the bed a bit too fast for Wooyoung's liking, unable to stop her from storming out of the room with the force of a giant.

"Mari!" Wooyoung yelled at her as she slammed her doors closed behind her. Her face twisted with anger, her usual smile was now dropping to the floor in a deep frown of disappointment. She almost could have the same stone-cold eyes Yeosang had, that could turn even the strongest men into stone. No one would even dare jump in her way now, not when the very aura around her seemed to radiate aggression. Everyone except Wooyoung, of course. The boy came up behind with lightning speed, grabbing her wrist to stop her advance. "Mari, think about this for a second. Storming in that office with no plan won't do you any good."

The girl stopped in her tracks, snatching her arm away from Wooyoung as she gave him an annoyed glare. "Alright then. Since you're so smart what do you think I should do, hm? What does Wooyoung think is good for me this time? Do you have a better plan than telling the boss that his stupid decision of not even taking a minute to honor his wife who died without a chance to fight? Oh right, you don't." Mari let words just fly out of her mouth, her frustration as clear the nighttime sky in her tone. There wasn't anything Wooyoung could do, he had an opportunity and he didn't take it. 

Now she's going to take advantage of her position to give her father a piece of her own mind. Wooyoung let out a deep sigh as if he was trying to keep himself calm in the situation and no lash out at her. "I know you're pissed off, Mari, but strutting in there with pure anger and nothing else can get you hurt a lot more than you think. You wanted to be treated like an adult, right? You want to be treated like every other person in this building right? Then he's going to treat you like one with no benefits attached. This isn't a situation where you can go in and come out completely untouched. Someone will get hurt and that someone is going to be you."

"He's right." The two turn their heads down the hallway they were standing in to find her father walking towards them. There was a sort of... hollowness in his eyes that wasn't there before, and when her father walked he brought along an icy and chilling cold wind with him, even if they were in the middle of the autumn season. He stood in front of them in strictly business attire, as if he had been out and about hopping from meeting to meeting. Mari only looked up at him with pure rage, no remorse even hidden in her eyes. This was the first time she had seen her father today after all.

"You wanted me to treat you like an adult, as a more simpler member of this faction, then so be it." He told her, leaning forward and getting all into her personal space. Mari took a few steps back to regain comfort, but her father didn't seem to care. The warmth she used to feel radiate off of him whenever she was around was completely replaced but a suppressed anger, one much greater than her. "My word is the law. There's no swaying my thinking or not my opinions, especially when it comes to these things. If you have a bone to pick with such laws, I have no problem with throwing you out to the dogs."

Mari would be lying if she said she didn't feel a shiver roll down her spine. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't slightly trembling at her own father's cold words, something she had never been faced with before. Every time he scolded her, it was all because he truly did care of her. Mari was his only daughter after all! But this one time he scolded her like she was just another soldier in the faction, there was no remorse behind his words. No warmth, no worry, no underlying hope that she'd genuinely listen this time. It was genuinely hollow.

Her father rose back up to his full height again, looking down at Wooyoung who practically grappled onto Mari the moment he pulled away. He held onto Mari's arm with a tight grip, as if once he let go she'd fly away with the wind. He gave her father a hard stare, trying to hide the glare that threatened to reveal itself just for Mari's sake. Her father smirked, almost scoffing at how easily Wooyoung was to trigger into a protective manner. "Of course, that's not why I'm here. I didn't come all the way here to give my daughter a scolding, right? I came to bring you some interesting news."

There was a confused expression that donned their faces before footsteps could be heard marching towards them in the hallway. In just a few seconds, a small group of men came down the hallway in what seemed like an attempt to a single file line, not even trying to be secretive about their arrival. One of the bigger, stronger men to be carrying a person on their shoulder, who showed no sign of struggle or fight in them. Her father cleared his throat a little louder than usual, causing the much bigger man to turn around in confusion. "This is the big news I wanted to show you. A little brat that a patrol unit had found sneaking around out turf."

The man turned to reveal the stranger to them, who seemed to be in worse shape than Mari had thought. His face was littered with purple bruises and bleeding cuts, one of his eyes left to suffer a hideous black eye that seemed to have been given to him. Thankfully the boy was still breathing, but his bruised face and ruffled up dark hair seemed to show he didn't go without a fight. "Wait a second," she mumbled, grabbing his face to inspect him a little closer. He seemed young, but not too far off from how old Mari was. In fact, he might have been just a few years younger than him, at least two years younger at best. "This is just some high school kid."

Her father shook his head, walking over the boy with a grim expression on his face. "Oh no, he isn't some harmless high school child, this isn't a school I'm running here after all." He told her, grabbing a handful of the unconscious boy's hair. He yanked his head up, examining his face closely with a deep frown on his face. "I had some of our men do a backup check on him before bringing him here. His name is Choi Jongho, and I have full reason to believe that he either participated in or watched my wife and your mother's death."


	18. Intuition

"He's gone crazy!" Mari yelled, slamming the door behind her. The sound resonated through the room she entered, shaking every object that didn't have a stable base. It shook Wooyoung to the core, trembling along with the objects in the room that felt her rage. "It's been four days since they brought that kid into the manor. They won't let me or Wooyoung into that room they're keeping him in and it doesn't sound like he's been speaking either. Or anything important that the boss wants to hear. He probably isn't involved with anything related to the two factions, Let alone the death of the boss's wife. He's reaching so hard that it hurts to even look at that kid's wounds. I mean did you even see how badly he was injured when he came? They beat him as if he was heavily armed!" 

The only one who seemed unfazed by her hostile attitude was San, sitting patiently in the bed the faction had given him. He simply glanced at her with his notorious eye smile, almost enjoying her temper tantrum. Really, the boy had been all smiles once he had begun to regain his strength and consciousness. He had passed out a few moments after she had left the manor according to Wooyoung, and had only awoken the moment she came back. After that? He's been more giddy than normal, a permanent smile on his face no matter how hard someone tried to bring him back to neutral. It was... slightly terrifying. It was if San was withholding any true emotion he had.

Though, Mari didn't seem to pay attention to it. She cared about him, of course, but her brain was focused on the present problem that was plaguing her mind. "Who knows what they're trying to do to make him talk? Talk information that he doesn't even know? This may be a mafia with some twisted ideals but I refuse to let them continue what they're doing to him. But no one is listening to me! No one is giving me in the smallest bit of consolidation!" Mari complained, crossing her arms and falling face-first into San's bed.

She resisted a scream of frustration, several thoughts racing through her head as she planned to continue ranting. Though she was stopped before she even began as San began to speak, his eye smile still very prominent on his face. "How do you know that Choi Jongho is innocent?" Mari's head quickly shot up from the bedsheets, giving the boy a confused expression. San's smile was a lot more tight-lipped than she remembered it and his eyebrows were twitching in what felt like suspense. But his overall vibe was hostile as if he was trying his best to keep his composure but the amount of anger that was being up in him was too much for himself to handle.

Mari was on the receiving end of his wrath, the side no one wanted to be on. She had never been on San's bad side, they were three peas in a pod with Wooyoung after all. She didn't even think it was possible if she had to be honest. Mari glanced towards her childhood friend, who only gave her a nervous look back. With a deep breath, Wooyoung turned to San fully, trying to calm his anger down while he could. "Look San, I know it sounds weird but—"

"Answer. Mari." San continued, not even sparing Wooyoung a glance. Wooyoung usually was the one who could keep San calm, as if he had the leash to the wild dog. But every so often, he couldn't be in control anymore. It was quite frightening to watch happy-go-lucky San go into a careful and controlled tone, so icy cold that he could freeze wildfires. He always tried to act like he was fine, but his true emotions always radiated off of him like moonlight. "How do you know that Choi Jongho is innocent?"

Mari cleared her throat, sitting up straight off the bed and leaned against the headboard to look as comfortable as possible. "Well... it's my intuition. My gut feeling so to say." She responded, trying her best to explain herself. "I just know that with every fiber of my being that he's innocent. That Choi Jongho was in no way, shape, or form involved in your ambush or my mother's death." 

San snorted at her words. Though it soon turned into a small chuckle, deeply frightening both Wooyoung and Mari. He definitely didn't buy what Mari had presented him. The boy grabbed her wrist and forced her down to his height on the bed, his sickly sweet smile still apparent on his face. The girl's skin crawled with goosebumps when the rough texture of the bandages made contact with her wrist. She could feel, what was now, dry blood that had harden underneath the bandages, a constant reminder of the unfortunate state San had returned in.

"We don't need intuition, Mari," San replied, his grip on her wrist getting even tighter the more he spoke. "I don't need a gut feeling, Mari. You don't even know him. You don't know how he acts, what he does, who he's really allied with. Don't try to protect people you don't even know about when they're the only lead we have on how the Kim Faction even knew where we were. You're on the side of the Seo Faction, Mari. Not his."

"Am I interrupting something?" The three turned their heads towards the door, only to be greeted by an extremely familiar face. Yeosang stood at the door, dressed in an unfamiliar red and black suit, almost if he was heading to somewhere in need of formal wear, His eyes darting between the three friends expectantly, seemingly not having a clue on what was going on in the room before he had walked in. Though his gaze finally landed on San, a small smirk on his face and he began to speak again. "Is that an emotion I see? Coming back to your senses are you?"

San's wrath attempted to die down at Yeosang's words. All anyone had ever seen from the boy for a few hands had been blissful ignorance after all. A fake smile slowly grew on his face once again as he waved to him. "Just a little."

Yeosang nodded before pointing towards Wooyoung and Mari. "You don't mind if I borrow the two of them, do you? I know they're your friends and visiting you to make sure you're okay, but I have something important to discuss. I would say you could come to... but the Underboss would kill me if I interrupted your resting anymore." He explained, opening the door a little wider for the pair to fit through. San only shrugged at his words and Mari and Wooyoung took the first moment they could to get out of the room. It was getting stuffy with awkward silence and tension between the three of them.

"Have a nice rest, Choi San. I do hope you feel better soon." Yeosang spoke as Mari and Wooyoung stepped as far back from the door as possible. Being in front of an angered San was like a near-death experience. Better yet, it felt like they were standing right in front of the devil himself. Mari was lucky that Yeosang had come in when he did. Who knows what her next set of words would have been, and how badly it would have altered the outcome of their survival. "I thought the three of you were close friends. Why did it feel like I had just walked to hell and back in there."

Wooyoung grabbed onto Mari's shoulder and shouted, "Mari is an idiot! An absolute dumbass! We had come back from trying to get into the room they were holding Choi Jongho and she was still upset about the whole ordeal and the audacity to yell about her place on the situation to San. San, who was literally almost murdered because of the incident!" He turned back to the girl and forced her to look him, practically turning beet red as he tried to get all his words out in one breath. "Did you really think he was going to be on your side when he was the one who survived the whole. It's called survivor's guilt for a reason Mari!"

"I get it! I get it!" Mari exclaimed, shoving his hands off of her. Yeosang raises a brow in amusement as the girl started rambling, "I shouldn't have been complaining about all that in front of him. I did something stupid without thinking, okay? It was already hard enough trying not to expose my relationship with my own dad and it's even harder trying to explain how much I know deep down that the kid they found isn't worth the damage they're doing to him."

"You wanna see if you're right?" Yeosang asked, turning to walk towards her. He adjusted the shirt collar of his suit as a smirk appeared on his face, seemingly enjoying Mari's confusion. "I don't dress up like this for just any reason, you know. I was supposed to be going with one of our men to interrogate them for information on the whole situation. However I can...," Yeosang paused, trying to find the right words use,"...have a few uninvited visitors with me instead of the designated men."

"Are you serious?" Wooyoung piped up, his eyes widening at the boy's suggestion. "But... won't you get in trouble for that? The Consigliere sent you with specific people for information."

Yeosang smiled, though it was filled with a little more mischief than normal. "Who said he had to know?" The Consigliere's son wasn't known for tricks and lies. His brutal honesty was apart of his reputation, something that made men shiver at the thought of their secrets being spilled by him. Mari's face slowly grew into a smirk, snorting at his words. Was it possible that Wooyoung and her behaviors were washing off on him? Whether it was a or not, she hoped it would always work in their favor.

Mari took a second to glance back at the door that lead to San's room. She let out a frustrated sigh before noticing the door to the room was cracked open, just a slit of light from the inside shining through. Yet before she knew it, the door shut closed before she could even say anything about it. Maybe her eyes were just playing tricks on her, Yeosang did close the door when the two exited... right? Though, Mari shook off the feeling before giving the Consigliere's son a smug smirk. "You know you just keep growing on me more and more."

* * *

Mari wondered how much easier it would be to get access to things if she just explained who was sometimes. It wasn't a reoccurring thought she had, in fact, it was a rather rare though for her to have. But then there were times she'd see Yeosang, the only person she knew who was born into power and kept it in his grasps. He used it as a special key, only unlocking certain doors to get to certain things that he needed. He used his status to clear the way, to keep the people around him from losing their heads.

He handled it with elegance and respect as well, but watching him was the only part Mari wanted in it. She didn't want to force people into giving her the respect she may or may not have deserved. She want to make people do her bidding only because of where she stood in the faction's tree of power. But Yeosang would always show her the bright side, the nicely polished and honed side of the potential power she could have. She only wondered how well he was handling it all in his head.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Wooyoung's voice broke her thoughts, breaking her out of her daze as she turned towards him in confusion. "The whole... confronting him yourself situation. You sure this is what you want to do right now? What if your suspicions aren't true, what if he really has some sort of part in this whole fiasco? What will you do then? I know you, Mari. Your temper will not be able to withstand a truth such as that."

Mari stopped in her tracks, letting his words sink in. Wooyoung was right questioning her actions. What would she do? Mari has always been one to act upon pure impulse, who knew what she'd truly do once words exited that boy's mouth. Though she simply looking up towards her childhood friend and pat him on the back. "That's why I have you right?" The girl asked him, quickly hooking her arm around the boy's neck. "You keep San on a leash, now it's time to switch to the old dog who can learn new tricks."

Wooyoung rolled his eyes at her backward analogy, though a supporting smile soon sprouted on his face. He snakes his arm around her neck as well, mirroring the same playful body language she was giving him. "Yeah, let's just hope this dog is willing to listen to the trainer." The boy sneered, causing Mari to gasp in shock at the backhanded compliment.

"I don't know what the two children in back are doing," Yeosang spoke over his shoulder, standing in front of the door. The two quickly detangled themselves from each other of the soon to be Consigliere turned around to face them. There was no emotion in his face, not a single shimmer could she detect in his eyes. All that stood there were the stone-cold eyes of Mari could say was Medusa's mortal son. "But we're here. You ready?"

Mari opened her mouth to respond, seemingly as giddy a Girl Scout getting her first badge. Yet nothing escaped it, words and sounds refusing to fly out to respond. She slowly became hyperaware of her surroundings, everything finally being to settle in her head as she stood in front of the door that could change her whole mindset. The trio seemed to have descended downwards in the manor, surrounded by concrete walls and awfully dim lighting that made it almost impossible to see too far behind them. The door they stood in front of was clearly iron, made for stopping any immediate attempts for escapes.

And she was shaking, Mari's hands were shaking. Just a small tremor, yes, but still trembling nonetheless. Her body was breaking into a cold sweat even. Yet she couldn't tell why it didn't make sense to her. Was it being triggered by the nervousness of her intuition being wrong? That all she had preached to San had been for nothing? Or was it the nervousness of her being so god awfully close to finally confronting one of the closest things she's gotten to her mother's unfortunate doom? All Mari knew was that it definitely wasn't fear.

"Mari, look at me," Wooyoung demanded, spinning the girl on her heel to face him. He seemed a loss for words for a moment, trying to gather up enough thoughts to try and reassure her. "You won't have to run away again, okay? I'm right here, and nothing will happen while I'm next to you. I'm your best friend and I know you better than I know myself. You can handle this. And if you don't think you can, I've always got your back."

Mari inhaled sharply, trying to calm down the nerves that attempted to force her to flee. "You're right. You've got my back. This will be easier than anything I've ever done in my life." She quickly responded, building up her own courage to fuel her to go through the door. 

The two glanced towards Yeosang as held a key in his hands, twisting and turning it in between his fingers. He looked up at them from the key and cocked his head slightly to one side. "Be gentle, okay? He's had a rough few days." Was all the boy spoke as he placed the key inside of its lock, a small click from the door resonating in the hallway they stood in. The door was unlocked and Mari was free to meet what she assumed was an completely conscious Choi Jongho.

Wooyoung immediately grabbed her hand as Yeosang turned the doorknob, slowly opening it up reveal its inhabitants. Mari couldn't help squeeze Wooyoung's hand in response, her eyes widening as she was greeted by the sight in front of her. The boy they had been dying to meet, Choi Jongho, was tied for a chair. There was a chain binding his arms behind him to restrain his movements. 

The wounds he sustained didn't seem to be getting any better either, retaining the ugly, irritating purple that pulsed with pain. He seemed drenched in water as well, his hair glossy stuck to his forehead. His head perked up from the sudden movement of the door, alarming him of people entering the only room he had been waking up to.

Yet when his eyes meet Mari's, the world seemed to freeze right where they were. She was overcome with emotions, feeling Jongho's despair and frustration crash over her like ocean waves. She opened her mouth to speak as she took cautious steps inside with Wooyoung close behind her. Though, the boy beat her to it, his childish yet hoarse voice echoing throughout the whole room. "You." He spoke, never breaking eye contact with her. "It's you."


	19. Dulce Periculum

"Do I know you?" Mari questioned, his grip tightening around Wooyoung's hand as she gave the boy a hard stare. The door to the room closed behind the pair, leaving them all alone with the boy in question. Jongho didn't say anything after his mysterious two words, only returning the girl's stare with an equally hard one. "Answer me, you have no choice but to." The girl demanded, feeling her brain already festering up with confusion and frustration.

The boy smiled at her, his expression almost teasing in a way. Though his one black eye restrained the moment in his face, causing his smile to be a little lopsided at the same time. "Oh yeah, I know you. Not much of course, but enough to pick you out of a crowd. It's funny, you're a lot different from how people describe you." He answered, sitting up in the seat he was tied to. "Oh, I shouldn't say people. More like... person."

"This is Choi Jongho," Yeosang formally introduced, twirling the keys to the room in his hands. He slid past Wooyoung and Mari to stand right in front of the boy currently under investigation, his expression never wavering from the blank one he wore. "It's been rather hard getting information out of him for the past few days. Yet he seems... rather talkative today."

The expression on Jongho's face dropped almost immediately. The little playfulness that was bouncing between his eyes and voice completely dissipated within seconds. Mari felt a rush of emotions overcome her, namely the despair from earlier. It was as if the boy was projecting his emotions out there for the world to see, unable to mask them to hide his true colors. He must truly be afraid of Yeosang.

She glanced between the two before dropping Wooyoung's hand as quickly as she could and pulling Yeosang back into line. The Consigliere's son stumbled at the sudden tugging as Mari pushed him behind her. "That's okay! We need him to be talkative, right?" Mari raised an eyebrow at the boy, silently telling him to back down before turning back to Jongho. "Listen, we aren't going to hurt you."

"Oh, I know." Jongho mocked, "Everyone has said that so far. I know exactly what you want, you want answers to situations I have no part in!"

Wooyoung rolled his eyes at the boy's words, not too keen on his complaining. "Look here kid, we're trying to be the good guys in the situation. We, well... she, wants to prove your innocence to everyone else so we can let you go free. All you have to do is answer a few questions and you're ready to go." He attempted to explain, though Jongho wasn't buying anything he was being told. 

"Listen to me," Mari said, though it was more of a growl of frustration. She took a few steps forward before crouching down in front of him, placing her hands on the boy's shoulders to catch his attention. Jongho winced as a result, perhaps because he may have had some injuries on his shoulders. Mari immediately recoiled her hands, instead of placing them on his lap. 

Jongho reluctantly looked down at the girl, his face contorted with pain from his already aching wounds being touched. Mari didn't break eye contact with him, making sure that he paid attention to what she was saying. "I think you need us on your side right now. We're the only ones who believe you're innocent... I'm the only one who believes your innocent. And that must seem like something right? Seeing as I'm high ranked or whatever you wanna call it."

"Of all the people in this room right now," Wooyoung spoke up, crossing his arms as he crouched down next to Mari. "You can trust her completely. Out of everyone in this building right now? She's the only one you can trust. All we need you to do is answer just a few questions so we can find a way to get you out of here." Mari couldn't help herself, unable to hide the growing and happy smile that was on her face. No matter what she decided to do Wooyoung always became her ride or die, even if the odds were stacked against them.

"You two are an impossible duo," Yeosang commented, only to receive snickering from the crouched down friends. Though the Consigliere's son quickly reined them back into a serious manner, needing them to focus while they still could. "Now, Choi Jongho, are you going to comply or not?"

Jongho frowned, completely lost in thought for a second. He looked up after a couple moments of pondering, the chains bounding him to the chair jingling as he fidgeted about. "I really wish I had some... crazy unheard of information for you to hear. But I've been telling everyone the exact same information and it's gotten me nowhere. I don't think it can really help in this situation."

"But I haven't heard this information yet!" Mari exclaimed, her hands balling into a tight fist as she tried to explain herself. "Can't help you if I don't hear the full story. There are such things as loopholes for a reason Jongho, and I'm not stupid! If you're hiding information from me just because I seem like I won't figure out what's going on then you're digging herself a deep hole for own grave."

Jongho frowned, glancing towards each of the teenagers that were staring him down. "It's nothing useful, everyone else seems to think I'm hiding some sort do secret between it all," The boy rolled his eyes as he leaned up against the back of the stair, using his foot to keep him from losing his balance. "I've told everyone that I was out one night like I usually was, trying to.... to make my way back to where I came from."

Mari stared at Jongho for a second, taking note of the sudden pause in his sentence. He opened his mouth to continue on with his recalling of the events he experienced, seemingly not going to explain where he was going. "Don't stop, tell us where you were going. We can only help you as long as you give us enough information to solidify your alibi."

"Do I have to? It's not that important, I swear it isn't." Jongho begged, talking in the form of pouts as if he was a five year old. Wooyoung had to cover his mouth to hide the growing smile and small giggles that continued to escape his mouth, not being able to take the restrained boy seriously. "I mean it! It's not very significant to this whole ordeal so there's no point in—"

"I advise you tell us," Yeosang informed him, his stone cold gaze never leaving the boy's figure. "Either we find out or they find out, you can determine for yourself which one is more beneficial for you."

Jongho grimaced at Yeosang words, not making the boy feel any better about revealing his hidden information. Mari glanced between the two boys at her side before turning back to the youngest one in front of her," Unfortunately it's rather important to this situation. We need to know where you were beforehand so we can check to make sure you're telling the truth. Missing information will only lead to your misfortune."

"I'm not allowed to talk about it. No one is supposed to know that it even exists." Jongho explained, though he took one more look at Yeosang and began to assess the situation he was in a little further. "Actually the more I think about it, it's probably not as much of a secret as the crime syndicate that not only kidnapped me but is taking the time to talk to me right now..."

"You think?" Mari questioned him, earning another childish giggle from Wooyoung.

Jongho rolled his eyes as he thought about what he was going to say next, thinking rather carefully about his words. "The people who know about the place call it the Utopia. It's sorta like... an underground fight club, I guess? Though it has several other functions besides the actual fighting part, that's just what I involve myself in. Every night when I have the chance, that's where I go."

"I know the Utopia. I never went inside, but there have been several men in the faction sent there to discuss negotiations between gangs and factions from this country or others." Wooyoung explained, a confused expression donning his face as he studied Jongho. "You're there for the fights, right? Are you a Watcher, betting on the fights that are held there I assume."

"Watcher? Betting? Oh no, I don't have the money for that," The boy corrected, an offended look on his face at Wooyoung's assumption. "I'm there for the fights, meaning I'm in the fights. I'm what they call a Player I think. I fight other Players for the Watchers entertainment and to get a little money on the side. It works for me! Usually, I come out as the winner there, but when those guys from this place jumped me? I was totally outnumbered."

"That means you've been branded though, you're chained to the Utopia the moment you decide you want to become a player," Wooyoung stated, tensing up at thought of fighting in the Utopia. Mari didn't understand why he was so frustrated with the boy's decision, a decision that was clearly made long before they had ever known about the existence of Jongho. Whatever Wooyoung was going to try to do, convince him to leave she assumed, he wouldn't be able to sway the boy's mind.

"What's done is done Wooyoung, we can't change the decisions of other people," Mari pointed out, attempting to make her friend back down off from whatever emotion-fueled nagging he was going to do. "You should know that, especially being friends with me for so long. But think about it this way, now we know why my dad thinks Jongho was a possible culprit to the attack. He's in the Utopia and factions are known for holding meetings there, plus the fact that he's a... player or something? It makes sense in my dad's head!"

"Shut up!" Yeosang hissed, making the three turn there heads towards the boy. Mari immediately opened her mouth to retaliate but noticed that the Consigliere's son wasn't even looking towards them. His eyes were glued to the door he had locked behind them earlier, watching as the lock twisted and turned in an attempt to open it up. After a short moment of silence, there was the jiggling sound of keys on the other side of the door, followed by clicking the noise of an unlocking door. "Shit."

Mari and Wooyoung both shared worried glances before turning towards Choi Jongho, noticing all the color in his face drain into a single white and his body tensing up against the chains that kept him bound to the chair. "They weren't joking when they said they were bringing them, did they? I'm gonna die here."

The girl's eyes widened at the boy's statement before grabbing Wooyoung's hand instinctively. "We're so fucking screwed." 

Yeosang backed away from the door, not daring to try and kept the person out of the room. He stood right in front of Wooyoung and Mari as if making himself a human shield for the two against whatever outside the door was coming inside. They all held their breath as the door began to creak open, revealing not only the Underboss and Mari's own father at the door but someone else. There was a smaller figure behind the two men, their arms crossing against their chest as they tapped their foot impatiently on the ground.

"What are you doing here?" The Underboss questioned, his voice echoing throughout the room loud and clear. The trio began to spew out anything that came to mind, desperately trying to put together an alibi to justify their reasoning for being in the room. Though the Underboss's anger was immediately pointed towards Yeosang, a snarl growing on his face as he spoke," I don't even have to guess do I? You brought them here, didn't you? You know they don't have permission from any higher—"

The man's voice caught off by a hysterical laugh that began to ring out everyone's ears, unable to contain itself to just a mere chuckle. "Now isn't this just hilarious! Who would have ever thought this would have happened?" Mari recognized the voice, she recognized it a little too well for her liking really. Without a second thought, she shoved past Wooyoung with a little more strength than she had meant, sending him stumbling to the side as she stood in front of the two.

The figure easily slid between the Underboss and her father, revealing them to be a female with a dragon tattoo snaking up her right arm, a known symbol of a third lesser-known yet still powerful faction. Her heels clicked on the stone floor as she stood in front of Mari, a knowing smirk growing on his face. "I knew there had to be a reason for that bold and brash attitude of yours. But who would have thought you had all of this to hide, Seo Mari."

"Jaerin," Mari responded, forcing herself to be composed no matter how hard it was to control herself. The last time she had seen Jaerin was during Mingi's party when the girl had coaxed her into drinking some sort of alcohol she had no knowledge of. As of now, it had been almost two weeks since she had last seen her. "What is she doing here? You always have an explanation for things so this one better be as good as the rest." The girl demanded, quickly glancing towards her father for answers.

"This is Lee Jaerin, though it seems you two have met already," He began, walking towards the two girls who were on the verge of possibly attacking each other. Her father placed a hand on Jaerin's shoulder as her smile grew into a sickly sweet one. "She is the daughter of the Godfather in the Lee Faction. You understand what that means right? She's just like you, she's next in line to lead the Lee Faction just as you are with ours. And she's come to pick up Choi Jongho, a member of her faction."


	20. Fight Club

Mari glared lowly at the teachers in the room, her eyes watching them like a hawk. They didn't seem to be paying attention to her, conversing between each other and glancing towards her every so often. Their faces were filled with resentment and annoyance, having to deal with Mari once more in the after school hours. She was sent to detention for the nth time for her attitude towards the instructors and her clear disobedience to the rules of the school. 

Plus the fact that she had been purposely skipping school for several days, they were getting rather tired of the girl's antics. Though they had no choice but to shelter Mari in their school, her father would make it absolutely impossible for them to suspend or expel her. The school's placement was perfect for her double life as a Seo Faction member and regular rambunctious teenager. 

"When will you learn, Seo?" One of the teachers spoke, breaking out from the circle of instructors that were crowded in the corner of the room. "If you just did as told, you wouldn't be punished so often you know. I know you're as tired we are of these after school punishments." They tried to convince her, metaphorically on their knees and begging for her compliance.

She snorted at their pleading, shrugging her shoulders as she innocently batted her eyes at them. "Well... maybe if you just went ahead and curved my grades to a nice A and erased my currently horrible record, we could talk then?" The teacher's desperate expression quickly dropped into one of irritation, giving up their attempts at convincing her to change. "What? We both get what we want? You want me to be a good student, and I want to pass senior year! What a great deal, right?"

"There's no point in talking to her," A feminine voice taunted, crossing her arms as she narrowed her eyes toward Mari. She immediately recognized this teacher to be the one that sent her to detention a few months ago, the day she had first met Hongjoong and his wannabe bad boy crew. "It doesn't matter what you do, it's not going to change how she thinks. I honestly don't understand why our principal won't just expel her while we have the chance. She's detrimental to this school's reputation!"

"Oh my god, so mean," Mari mocked in the same tone, crossing her arms around his chest tightly and kicking her feet at the chair in front of her like a child. However, she fixed her face and attitude as she leaned towards the instructor, who instinctively leaned away from her. "If I'm so detrimental to this school's reputation then I wonder how bad you are!" She gasped, covering her mouth with a hysterically shocked expression on her face.

The teacher was fuming with anger, her ears turning bright red as she opened her mouth to retaliate. However, another adult quickly interfered, not wanting to write a report on a grown woman assaulting a teenage child. "Two hours, Seo. You're here for two hours. At least try and think about some solutions to your current problems, okay?" They asked, jingling the key to the room in their hands before the posse of educators left the room and closed it behind them. 

Mari was left in detention with only one teacher who didn't seem to pay much attention to her, seemingly grading papers from their other more important students. There was no way of her escaping now that the teacher she was with seemed rather young and the keys to keep them locked inside were gone. Though that didn't bother Mari that much, the other teacher's words did.

Her current problems? Mari had to resist practically scoff in their faces. What did they think her main problems were? Her unwavering attitude towards the adults that ran the school? Her forever falling grades that would make it impossible for her to "thrive" once she finally reached senior graduation? She only ever cared about her school life because her mother and everyone in the Seo Faction knew how that turned out. 

Her real problems were the ones that were buried deep in illegal territory, her mafia business so to say. With the Lee and Seo Faction allied with each other, Mari would be forced to see Jaerin a lot more often than she'd like. In fact, those who knew of her true position in the faction would be pushing her to keep up the bond the two mafias had at the moment. The Japanese Yakuza that they were allied with provided them with many more soldiers and weapons than they could imagine. The Lee Faction provided them with intel and territory that they previously didn't have access to. 

With the Lee Faction on their side, they were several steps ahead of whatever the Kim Faction was planning next. While that sounded absolutely lovely to Mari in the long run, she couldn't stand even being in the same as Jaerin. The girl already knew she didn't like her since the moment she met her, but after Mingi's party she had this aching feeling in not only her head but her gut that Jaerin couldn't be trusted. She didn't know what happened at that party that led her to come to that conclusion, but she definitely knew it wasn't anything good.

Then there was the mere existence of Choi Jongho and his affiliation with not only the Utopia but with the Lee Faction. Mari didn't get the entire backstory on how Jongho became a Player of the Utopia, as that wasn't the focus of their miniature mission. However, his affiliation with being a member of the Lee Faction was rather questionable. She only wondered if that's why he didn't want to speak of the Utopia in the first place. Did he assume that the trio was going to relay the information back to the Lee faction themselves as if they themselves didn't know this information?

In addition to these questions, what was a Lee Faction member doing all alone by himself anyways? Members of that mafia usually moved in groups of at least three to give each other protection in less crowded areas. Jaerin could freely move about the private school because there are so many students and staff that attend it on a weekly basis. She needed no guard to keep her safe when it would be too obvious to attack her in a group of not just people, but children so to say. Yet the place where the Kim Faction had attacked her mother and almost slaughtered the entire party wasn't populated by anyone...

She jerked back into reality at the sudden noises of knocking on wood, making her turn her head towards the single door that led into the temporary detention classroom Mari's alerted state quickly died down at the sight of Hongjoong at the window, knocking on it to catch her attention. "Loverboy?" She mumbled, quickly glancing around the room to check if the teacher had spotted the boy. It seemed as though they were no longer in the room though, having stepped out for a moment. 

The girl cursed to herself slightly, which meant the teacher had keys to the room on them despite the ones from earlier mocking her for her last escape attempt with them. "Princess?" Hongjoong responded the nickname that wouldn't go away still in his vocabulary. "Are you in detention? Ooh, did someone get in trouble with the authorities?"

She rolled her eyes at his teasing, crossing her arms as she started to speak. "No, I didn't. Well... I did, but I would have gotten out of the school campus had I taken the back way where you park your motorcycle. It's the fastest and easiest way out of here, half of the security cameras back there haven't been working since freshman year. I thought I was slick enough to go through the front... but they were expecting me there."

Hongjoong his head as he sat down beside her, his eyes widening as he processed the information he was receiving. "Wait... you know where I park my bike?"

She gave him a questionable look, recalling the exact placement of his black and red motorbike. "Yeah? In the teacher's parking lot behind the school, the place where all the cameras don't work. I go back there all the time to escape punishments like this easily like I literally just said. Plus, I remember you parked it there the day we met."

"You remember the exact place I park my bike every day from our first encounter?" Hongjoong questioned, just repeating her words in a different way. She looked clearly annoyed by his pestering despite answer his question twice. He gasped as he leaned back in the chair, a smile growing as his face as he thought about it. "Wow... you didn't even like me then and you know that? Are you sure we haven't met in the past before then?"

"No, It's been almost three months. You're a very easy person to figure out and I'm not stupid." Mari told him, narrowing his eyes at his easily impressed self. Hongjoong's smile openly grew wider and toothier at her words, taking no offense to her jabs. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you left at the end of the day like everyone else did." 

"You know how my parents suck right?" He suddenly said, jumping out of the chair and making his way to the storage room that was in the classroom. Mari nodded her head in response, immediately remembering the extremely short talk that had the day she ran away from the manor out of sheer panic. It wasn't that long ago, perhaps five days since they had done their little adventure around the city? That was the same day she had gotten the matching tattoos with Hongjoong engraved on her wrist and the night before Jongho had been found by the faction.

"I make a lot of junk and have nowhere to keep it at home since they tend to throw out anything that isn't my motorcycle. But both you and I they'd throw out the bike at any chance they get," Hongjoong began, though Mari found herself tuning out his voice. She stared at her left wrist, where the drawing had been inked onto her skin. If she was being totally honest, she had forgotten all about the tattoo she had gotten with him. There were more important things she had to worry about than a simple sun and moon that was permanently on her skin. For most teenagers, now would be the time to regret something like this since it would be rather hard to get off the final product.

Yet, the more Mari stared at the tattoo on her, the more endearing she found it. She didn't experience any of the regrets and worry that most people would have over having to hide such a permanent drawing from her father and the school itself. Mari simply found it... endearing. "Princess?"

"What?" She looked up with a confused expression on her face, completely lost on where she was in the conversation they were having. Hongjoong gave her the same exact expression before snorting, not finishing his sentence from earlier. Without any clue on what he had potentially asked or said beforehand, she started laughing in hopes that he had told her a joke instead. Though that would be rather out of character for her when did Mari ever genuinely laugh at one of Hongjoong's jokes?

"You zoned out, princess." Mari's expression quickly morphed into an annoyed one, her glare strong enough to pierce the sturdiest of metals. "I asked about the party, Mari. The one that Mingi has hosted at his house? Do you remember anything from it? I know it's been a while since it happened but we never got to properly talk about it."

The girl thought about for a second, unsure of how to answer him. "Properly talk about it? What do you mean, did someone call the cops or something? Is that why I don't remember anything from it?"

"Trust me," Hongjoong told her, walking towards her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "If the cops had shown up at that party, you would have remembered that. They don't really... like me or Mingi for several reasons. And the mere fact that you were with me during it would have made you guilty by association."

"I found you at that party?" She exclaimed, grabbing his arms and forcing them away from her shoulders. "What... when.... how?! I don't even remember seeing your face!" Hongjoong opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. He slowly began to realize what he had said, his eyes widening and his ears turning a slight pink in the process. She immediately took this as a sign that the boy knew something she didn't and needed to shake the information out of him. Perhaps this was a clue as to why she hated Jaerin a lot more than she originally did. "Hongjoong, what happened the night of Mingi's party?"

He immediately grabbed the hood of the leather jacket he wore, forcing it over his head to cover his eyes. "Nothing really happened, I swear! Well... not really, but I'm saving you the trouble of not knowing what happened for your sake. I really am." He lied, trying his best to ward off the girl's curiousness. It wasn't going to work though, Hongjoong was the only person she knew that had the information of what happened that night. He had no reason to try and avoid it now, he had already given away that she was with him that night, something she had no clue that night.

"Hongjoong, please!" She begged him, shaking the boy by the lapels of his jacket. "The only thing I remember from that night was arriving, entering, and vomiting after my friend had started to take me home. Information like that would be very nice to know right now so I can answer a few questions that have been in my head for the past week."

"No need to get handsy, princess," Hongjoong teased, making Mari recoil and roll her eyes in response to his words. "I have a general idea of what happened but definitely not the big picture. However, it is big enough for me to understand that Mingi needs to choose wisely on who he invites to these parties of his." He explained, a little bit of bitterness sprinkled in his tone. "Here's the sugarcoated version, whatever drink you had got spiked and you got... drunk."

She nodded her head as she sunk into her seat, giving Hongjoong a question glance. "That's the sugarcoated version? What's the normal version of that story then, since getting my drink spiked isn't the sweetest thing I'd like to hear."

Hongjoong was silent for a moment, pulling on the strings of his hoodie as he thought to himself. "Well, the culprit was Jaerin. You two were with each other and she had exposed herself on accident that she was the one who screwed with your drink and I almost killed her for it. You went absolutely apeshit and did a lot of things you'd probably regret if you remembered them."

Mari sat there at the desk puzzled. That explained why she had this even stronger burning harder for Jaerin now. She had tried to ruin her night after she herself had come to invite her on behalf of Hongjoong, with Mingi so less! However, there was still one thing on her mind, one thing that the boy in front of her wasn't telling her. "When you say I did things I'd regret... what exactly... were they?"

Almost on instinct, both of them met each other's eyes. Neither of them broke eye contact as the silence between the two settled and Mari's brain began to create one hundred different scenarios he might be talking about. For the most, everything Mari does is done with pride and no second-guessing. She rarely regretted the things she's done, but in the recent months, she's started to embarrass herself a lot more than normal on her own accord. And then it hit her.

"Holy shit." She gasped, suddenly the weight of the world crashing down her shoulders. Mari immediately covered her face with her hands, trying to hide the sheer shock and embarrassment that was on her face. Hongjoong's light laughter began to echo in the empty classroom as Mari sat there like a burning leaf. "I'm so... so sorry. Oh my God, that's.... fuck! I'm such an idiot!"

Hongjoong gave her a mischievous smile as he leaned his head up against his hand, trying to catch a glimpse of her face. "Aw, don't be embarrassing, princess." He cooed, "I really loved the compliments. I will never, ever, forgot them."

"Hongjoong shut the fuck up!" Mari screamed, kicking the boy's legs under the table. He only laughed through the pain, continuously teasing her about only what she could assume was her drunken state. She should have never asked him what had happened. Now that Mari was completely aware of her actions, he was never going to let it go.

* * *

"This is the place?" Mari asked, stepping out of one of the many Rolls-Royces and closing the door behind her. She stared up at the building in front of her, examining it closely. It was a rather large warehouse, not much bigger than the manor she lived in with her father. The building was rather dirty on the outside, covered in dirt and rust and some sort of unidentifiable substance that was splattered on the one side of the wall. The warehouse had a large coiling door that kept her from seeing the inside she could hear the excited shouts and screams from where she was standing. "It's not very secretive if you ask me."

"This place is being guarded at all times, the only reason we got through those gates to these warehouses is because the faction has been here before," a voice spoke, coming up behind her and placing a hat on her head. Mari immediately reached for the weapon that was strapped at her side but stopped when she realized the person who touched her was Wooyoung. He gave her a sly smile as his eyes darted down towards the pistol she clutched in her hands. "Don't pull that out like it's some toy. The Utopia may have mafias and gangs constantly walking through here, but there are still some somewhat innocent people walking through this building."

"I knew that," Mari quickly told him, spinning the trigger guard on her finger before placing it in the holster around her waist. It was quickly hidden by the shirt she pulled over it, followed by the black jacket she wore over it all. Just as easily as she took it out, it disappeared from plain sight. "Where are San and Jongho though? We can't go in without either of them. Plus the Lee Faction is supposed to be here as well. Without them, we're totally screwed for this plan."

The Lee Faction proved to be very good allies when it came to spying and gathering information. One of their men they had sent to spy and intercept any messages that Kim Faction was getting or receiving had discovered very critical information. The Kim Faction was scheduled to meet up with the Chinese Triad's leader, Zhang Yixing, in order to bring them to their side of the playing field. It was probably one of the reasons they had attempted to slaughter the entire group that had left the manor in the first place, to gain their own chance at wooing the Chinese Triad to their side.

They had planned to meet up at the Utopia, the fight club and negotiation area, in order to hide their attempts at allying themselves together. Fortunately, the Seo and Lee Faction had an easy ticket into the fight club to make their appearance in the building consequential. The Seo Faction would be arriving as Watchers and leave the impression that they were attending the night's fights as endorsers for Choi Jongho. Meanwhile, some members of both the Seo and Lee Factions would scour the building for members of the Kim Faction. Once they were found, they'd attempt to stop the faction completely in their tracks with whatever means necessary.

"The Lee Faction arrived before we did in order to start searching early, that's how they work." Wooyoung shrugged, beginning to walk towards the entrance to Utopia. "From what I know, Jongho had to also be here rather earlier as he is a Player and had to get ready for the matches he'd participate in order to sell this scene a little better. And San, I think he's participating as a sniper or something due to some of his wounds not being fully healed."

"Well, the whole gang's together, huh." She mumbled, taking the hat he had placed on her head off. "So I'm guessing we watch Jongho fight and discreetly look for the Kim Faction? And when we find them we do what everyone else will do and mess up their plans for acquiring allies."

"By any means necessary," Wooyoung repeated, as the two reached the entrance to the Utopia. There was no one following directly behind them, everyone in the faction had quickly spread out to either guard the other exits or start searching for the Kim Faction. He took a quick glance towards Mari before grabbing the back of her jacket's hood and throwing it over her head, snatching the hat out of her hands and placing it on her as if it was a finishing touch. "Make sure to obscure your face, idiot. We weren't given any masks because they're hoping that the chances of us ruining this entire plan is very low."

"I know, stop trying to baby me Wooyoung." She complained, slapping his shoulder in retaliation. "You can't even say anything, you're wearing a blazer and a cheetah print shirt. You look like you're dressed for clubbing, not for watching people fight for money."

He rolled his eyes before crouching down on the ground, grabbing the handle of the coiling door and slowly lifting it up. Light fluttered into the outdoors as the screams began to boom loudly in their ears, giving them a feel for the atmosphere they'd be entertaining for the night. There were several hundred, at least a thousand or more people inside of the room. A majority of them seem crowded around two large cage-like structures that stood side by side in the middle of the building. 

Around the edges of the building stood rows and rows of unopened packaged boxes that would never see the light of day due to the takeover the warehouse underwent. There seemed to be more rooms near the back of the warehouse which was most likely where the negotiations between the Chinese Triad and Kim Faction would be held, but that's not exactly where the two of them were headed. "You ready?" She asked Wooyoung, grabbing the boy's arm and dragging him inside unwillingly. "This is gonna be one hell of a night."

"One hell of a night watching people fight for money," He sneered as the two of them walked inside, the atmosphere hitting them much harder when they officially stepped inside. The air was hot due to so many people sharing the same breathing space and the entire building either smelled of sweat from the Players or alcohol from the Watchers. There was also a faint whiff of some sort of drug, but Mari just couldn't identify what. "So what are we planning to do? Split up and go to one of the cages to see what's going on?"

"No way, I'm sick of being split from you all the time," Mari told him, holding his arm tight as the walked through the crowd of people in the Utopia. Every so often they'd spot a Player in the crowd, sitting somewhere close to the back on whatever makeshift bench they had. There was a look of defeat in their eyes and their bodies seemed injured from their previous fights. There was a common theme between all the injuries they had: long and large gashes were marked across their arms and faces, still fresh and oozing with the thick liquid of blood. 

They must have all suffered defeat from the same exact person because the theme was slowly beginning to create a pattern the more people Mari spotted in the crowd. "I think we should look for Jongho," She whispered towards Wooyoung, a worried look in her eyes as she stared at all the fallen Players. "I don't know if he's noticed, but these people are all suffering the same almost fatal wounds. I think that's the guy we need to look out for just in case his affiliation isn't just with Utopia, but with the Chinese Triad or Kim Faction."


	21. The Benefactor

As Mari and Wooyoung got closer to the bulk of the crowd, it got louder and harder to hear on the ears. They were getting closer to the cage-like structures, where the fights were taking place. Near these arenas were several spread out groups, altogether but not at the same time. In a way, it was a sort of organized chaos, as there seemed to not be any rules in the Utopia. 

In one corner there is a rather small group of people. All of the people in the area seemed to be rather young, ranging from the ages of sixteen to mid-twenties. There was an outlier in the group, a man who seemed to be either in his earlier or mid-thirties, but other than that no one else was there. However, there was a woman who sat a makeshift counter, a permanent foxlike smile on her face as she spoke to the unsuspecting teenagers in front of her. In her hands, she held a few papers that Mari couldn't read from where she was but was able to spot the barcode tattoo that ran across her face.

Mari could safely assume that's where people became Players, signing their souls off to the Utopia. But the barcode didn't make any sense to her, it's a purpose not as obvious as the rest. The girl immediately began scanning the crowd for the defeated Players, searching them for anything that looked similar to the tattoo on the women. Though because of how fast Wooyoung and her were walking, she only caught blurry glimpses of black tattoos on their skin. She could only assume that they were the same barcode tattoo.

Directly opposite from the Player sign up was a more rowdy crowd. The people on that side seemed slightly off their rockers, slamming their fists into the tables set up for them and starting at small unnecessary fights between everyone present. At the same time, she spotted people laughing and grinning as they snatched money up from the unfortunate, counting their fortunes and slamming even more money down on the tables. The area she was looking at was probably where most of the betting took place, unorganized and untamable betting. 

"We're here," Wooyoung spoke, though Mari almost didn't catch him talking to hear. The duo had reached the cages, the cover-up of the fight club's illegal deeds. The noise in the area was deafening as the Watcher screamed their lungs out, cursing and growling at the Players in each ring. They banged their fists and shook the cage's bars in fits of fury and excitement as they watched the Players battle it out in front of them, though the Players didn't seem to mind. They were equally as pumped as the crowd as they attempted to stand their ground, facing an embarrassment.

She spotted the tattoos again, the similar ones all of the Players she had seen before. Every one of the Players that we're fighting in the cages had one of the tattoos, just in different spots unique to every one of them. "Those barcodes," Mari mentioned to Wooyoung, gesturing towards her shoulder where a Player had theirs. "What are they for? All of the Players have one but not the Watchers."

"It does a lot from what I've heard from others," Wooyoung responded, struggling to think of what to say in such a loud crowd. "Players get it during an initiation of sorts that binds them to the Utopia. It's used as a check-in for whenever Players come in and out of the Utopia, keeps track of their ranks and how many fights they win or lose... and acts as a tracker to hunt down the Players when they break their contract with the Utopia."

Mari didn't get a chance to ask any more questions after that, they had gotten interrupted by a clearly exciting moment to the Watchers. The two turned their heads to one of the cages, confused by the sudden crazed commotion. The cage to their left rattled as a body collided with the bars, an ugly raking sound following the rattling, and then finally a loud thud on the ground. The Watcher screamed in excited, screaming curses and taunting at the fallen Player as they shook the cage in pure adrenaline. 

"Wanna watch a fight with me?" Wooyoung questioned her, his voice slightly overshadowed by the howling of the Watchers. He quickly pulled her along as the two slid into the crowd, trying their best to fit in with the aggressive atmosphere of the Utopia. Wooyoung tried his best to get them towards the front, as close to the cage as possible, but the more enthusiastic Watchers beat him to it. Mari didn't need to move up closer though, she could see as much as she needed right where she stood.

In the cage stood two Players and blood scattered across the floor and dripping from its bars. One of the Players laid on the ground in pain, dripping in sweat and coughing up blood. He had various wounds on his body, the most notable being the large out purple bruise on his face and the enormous gash on his chest, throbbing in agony and pain. Blood dripped from the corners of his mouth and his busted bottom lip as he attempted to wipe it off and stand back on his feet. Yet his strength had clearly left him, his body trembling as he fought to keep himself off the ground. 

The Watchers were entertained by his aching state, screaming and chanting the name of the other Player while simultaneously throwing out insults to the other. "Finish him!" "Kill that bastard where he stands!" "Fucking end it all ready!" "He doesn't stand a chance against you anymore, stop waiting." The Player didn't even look like they were over the age of fifteen.

"Wooyoung if that Player attacks him again with another violent attack he'll die where he stands." Mari hissed, almost immediately averting her eyes from the scene. Though Wooyoung kept looking forward, his gaze never left the winning Player's head. He didn't respond to Mari's words either, simply placed his hands in his pockets and watched on calmly. "Wooyoung, he's going to end that kid's life."

"That's the point," He told her, cocking his head to the side as the Player grabbed the boy by the neck, lifting him off the ground and onto his feet. "That's why I found it so disturbing when Jongho said he was a part of the Utopia. In these cage fights, you can either let your opponent tap out or kill them while they're down. Usually, the latter is chosen because Players earn more money for eliminating the other fighter." Wooyoung explained, shuddering in reaction to his own words.

Mari's widened in shock, her immediately trying to think of a counter argument in her situation. Yet her brain went dark when she heard the gasps of the injured Player. They struggled to escape the grasps of their opponent, tears slowly beginning to flood from their eyes as they started to whimper and beg for their life. Their opponent didn't seem phased by their reaction, leaning towards their ears to whisper something to them. Whatever they had said had caught the Player off guard, but he didn't get a chance to respond as their body fell limp all of sudden, their eyes stuck in a frightening state as they disappeared off to the afterlife.

The crowd of Watcher roared in excitement as the fallen Player was dropped to the ground like a rag doll, cheering on the victor as everyone began to collect their money from their winning bets. The Player stood in the middle of the bloody ring, catching his breath and wiping off the sweat and excess blood from a scar across his face. The Watcher's chanted a singular name as they all shook the cage structure to its core, "CB97."

"Wooyoung," Mari turned towards the unbothered boy, forcing her hands to stop trembling from the pure anger and distraught that filled her entire being. Yes, Mari was born and raised in the world of illegal dealings and death all around her, but all the deaths that happened were accidentally or must be done. She knew exactly how it felt to look someone younger than her in the face as they practically begged for their life when she had no choice but to take it.

The mere fact that Players at the Utopia have the option to leave their already wounding opponents alive instead of taking their life, yet they continued murder them for extra money? It angered her. No, anger was a much too small word for the emotions she was experiencing. It enraged her very soul to even know unsuspecting teenagers younger than she was dying for some more crash than normal. Mari took a deep breath as she tried to control her fury, a strained smile on her face as she spoke to Wooyoung. "Where the fuck is Jongho?"

"I think there's a waiting room near the back of the cages where the Players wait. I saw some of the Players with the barcodes walk towards that area a little earlier." Wooyoung explained, pointing towards the direction he believed they went in. Mari grabbed the collar of Wooyoung's shirt and dragged him in the direction he sent her, the boy not even questioning her aggressiveness. Mari had an attitude and she got mad very regularly, but sometimes it was too risky to mess with her when she was already near the verge of exploding.

Though Wooyoung was right, there was a room that Players were coming in and out of. It was a rather large double door that had some sort of guard standing at it, a device in hand as he waited for Players to come back. When one did he would search them for a barcode tattoo and scan it no matter where the barcode was placed on their bodies and let them inside, then he would repeat the process all over again. 

The door to what the two assumed was a waiting room opened up, revealing the boy they had been looking for all along. He peered through cautiously before catching sight of Wooyoung and Mari, immediately giving them a nod of acknowledgment. The girl couldn't help but notice how much visibility happier Jongho looked to be out of the chains that kept him bound to the room in the Seo Manor. She even almost caught him smiling at the two before he realized the situation he was in. "You came right on time! The match is going to start soon since the cage two ended their fight a few seconds ago."

Jongho stepped out of the room fully and closed it behind him carefully before practically skipping towards the duo. She noticed a couple of things about the boy, not just his general more uplifted demeanor. There were bandages that were wrapped around his palms protectively probably to keep him from breaking his fingers in whatever fight he was about to participate in. There was also a black necklace wrapped around his neck given to him by the Seo Faction, with a blinking red light subtly illuminating on the necklace. The red light signaled that the device instead of it was on, turning what looked like a small accessory into a tracking device to keep Jongho from running away.

It must be odd for him to know that if he made the wrong move he'd have dozens of people chasing after him. "The referees kept telling me that I couldn't wear this necklace because of the potential of my opponent snatching it off of me or choking me out with it," Jongho explained, tugging on the disguised device to try and loosen it upon his neck. "But when I told them I literally couldn't take it off, they just wished me the best of luck and sent me off. They didn't even try and take it off themselves."

"Clearly they don't care about the wellbeing of their Players," Wooyoung shrugged as Mari let him go, switching together Jongho and grabbing his arm and inspecting it carefully. She was searching for the barcode tattoo that every Player in the Utopia had, hoping that the Lee Faction had done something about his connection to the fight club. "Who is your opponent? Hopefully not someone too dangerous since this is for show to get distract our enemies and disguise ourselves with the crowd."

"I can handle absolutely anyone in this place," Jongho corrected, his eyes trailing towards Mari with a confused expression. "I haven't lost a single match since I— hey, what are you doing?"

Mari stared at the black ink on his wrist, the barcode staring back equally as hard at her. The Lee Faction knew about his bind to the Utopia, how else would they have gotten the idea of using Jongho's position as a Player to mask their mission of disturbing the Kim Faction? Yet they didn't do anything about it, absolutely nothing at all. There were no signs of stitches to try and remove whatever tracked was inside of him. There was no sign of attempts at removing the tattoo that kept him trapped with the Utopia. They didn't even try to give him a fake one to get away with still competing in whatever match he was going to participate in.

He was basically bound to the Utopia forever and no one had made any attempt to help him escape. 

"Jongho," Mari said after a moment of silence looking up at him with a straight face. "You have to promise me that no matter what opponent you fight for this mock fight thing we're putting on to distract the Kim Faction, you will not kill them."

"What?" He asked, trying to process the weight of what she had said in his head. "That's how matches attract more attention, the more murderous the intent the more people come flocking your way! Usually, I just wait until the other Player faints but for a stunt like this one, we're going to need something that attracts the people. Plus... what if they come at me with murderous intent? I don't want to die!"

"I thought you said you never lose?" Wooyoung gasped, looking at Jongho with fake surprise. The younger boy shot him a glare of frustration, his ears burning a slight red at his teasing. He opened his mouth to make a comment back towards him but Mari grabbed his attention right before she lost it.

"Promise me this, Jongho." She demanded, her eyes burning with intense seriousness. "If you kill this Player in that ring or I catch a hint of deadly actions from you, I will not help you clear your name with the Seo Faction. I'll make it even worse for you to even breathe in that room, do you understand me?"

Jongho let out a frustrated huff, snatching his wrist away from Mari and nodding in response. "Choi Jongho! What a pleasant surprise, I get to see you before the match starts." A honeyed voice spoke, interrupting her conversation with him. The two Seo members turned their heads around to match the face to the voice, confused on who would attempt to address Jongho under the current circumstances they were in.

The moment Mari's eyes landed on the person behind them, the whole world stopped. It felt like she was almost frozen in time as her head began spinning a top. It was a woman, a woman she had never met before in fact. Yet her eyes stopped pendent the woman was wearing, not even catching a glimpse at her face. "I'm the endorser of your opponent. I wanted to meet the Player who would be going up against him. These must be your benefactors then? They look rather young to be taking such a job though... perhaps your friends then?"

From the pendent hung a shining gold skull jeweled with silver gems on it, surrounded by crimson red flowers the color of blood. The Kim Faction symbol.

Mari instinctively reached for the pistol strapped around her waist, forgetting all logic in fight or flight moment. Wooyoung stopped her just before she could reveal the weapon though, grabbing her arm and forcing it to her sides. "We're benefactors and friends," He lied, though his voice was drenched in the same honey-like tone the woman before then was using. "Our parents usually come to spectate his fights, but they were busy. As friends, we couldn't just leave him here without any moral support in the background so that's why we're here."

The woman laughed in response, her eyes turning into crescent moons as she smiled. "Oh, how cute! Children's friendships are so pure of heart, I just adore how you all get along so well." She told them, a glimmer of amusement in her eyes. Despite Mari's instinct fueled action, she didn't seem to suspect the three of anything. "I'm glad I got to meet you all before the match began. I almost feel remorse once the match ends."

Jongho gave the woman a curious glance, quickly pipping," What's going to happen at the end of the match...?"

The woman's smile dropped into a small smirk, her eyes resembling those of a fox. "Either you'll be dead or everyone here will go out in flames. It's rather sad when I think about it, you three seem like such close friends. I'd hate for you to turn to ashes before you can even move out of your parents' house... I advise you to forfeit this match while you can so you can keep your lives."

"Forfeit? I'd lose so much money for forfeiting this match, I can't afford that!" Jongho complained, spitting out whatever came to his mouth. Mari immediately spun around and covered his mouth, restricting him from speaking any longer. She stopped him just in time as well, because Jongho was letting out a string of muffled words that would probably put all three of them in trouble if the woman heard what he said.

"Oh, how cute is he?" She cooed at Jongho, leaning towards him to ruffle his hair like a child. "He's like a little angry bunny! How adorable is that?" All three of them jerked back and away from her, on edge because of her affiliation and warning. The woman simply smiled once more as she stood up to her full height, her skull pendant shining in the dingy lightning the warehouse gave them. "I am the benefactor of CB97, that ruthless Player in the match before yours. If you truly believe you can go up against him then be my guest! I'm getting more and more interested in this fight the more you all continue to talk."

The crowd began to chant the name of her beneficiary, excited to watch another one of his matches back to back. Mari could see it all even though she wasn't really there: the exchanging of money as Watcher bet on their winner and the amount of bloodshed that would be splattered on the cage's floor. Jongho was going to die if he went up against the Player. "Oh! It seems it's my time to leave. Good luck little ones! I can't wait to see how this ends."

The moment the Kim Faction woman left their vicinity, Wooyoung immediately turned towards Jongho. "Jongho you're going to die at the hands of a Kim Faction member, you have to forfeit this match right now." He warned, shaking the boy by the shoulders to make him realize the current stakes he was in.

He shook his head vigorously and forced Mari's hands away from his mouth, a determined expression in his eyes. "No way! I'm not going to forfeit just because some mafia lady is scaring you? I've never lost a match since I've been with Utopia and there's no way I'm going to lose now. Plus think of all that victory money I'll lose if I quit." Jongho declared, turning on his heel and walking towards the cage gate to let him inside the ring.

"I don't care about victory money, you're life is on the line! Jongho, the Kim Faction has much more of an influence on people than you believe," Mari added, chasing after him as she tried to convince him out of it. "While I would give you permission to kill the guy that woman endorsed, he's going to kill you before you even land a hit on him. You aren't trained enough to know how to fight back those devils, they'll slaughter you!"

"They know your faction because you've been fighting them since like... the beginning of time," He mentioned, shrugging her off with full confidence in himself. Jongho punched the air as he walked, landing hits on his imaginary foe. "They don't know me because I'm just a simple Player in the Utopia. All I need to do is give him the quick one, two, and boom! He's out for the count! Plus his last opponents age him that huge scar on his face!"

"His last opponent died," Wooyoung stated matter of factly at the three stood only a few seconds away from the gate. The men guarding the gate began to unlock it as he approached and Wooyoung quickly grabbed Jongho's shoulders, spinning him around to face them. "Look even if you did end up defeating that guy, you heard what that woman said! The Kim Faction is going to set ablaze to the Utopia. This fight club is going to be in flames and you'll be trapped in that cage because everyone is running away."

"You really believe that they'll do that," Jongho asked him, blinking his eyes at Wooyoung innocently as he slipped out of his grasp. "You said it yourself, all sorts of gangs and mafias use Utopia to hide their illegal junk. That includes the Kim Faction, they wouldn't get rid of it when it benefits them so much! She's just bluffing to get under our skin, don't even worry about it. I'm going to go in, beat CB97 and take my W, and you two are going to interfere with the Kim Faction and whoever they're meeting."

"Jongho, stop it!" Mari cursed as the boy stepped into the gate, closing before the two could get a chance to drag him back out. Jongho gave the boy a boyish smile and stuck his hand through one of the bars, giving the two a thumbs up as if he wasn't making a very dangerous decision on his own. "Jongho, you're going to die in there, don't do this. We'll find another plan, just come back out of there."

Though the men guarding the gate pushed both Mari and Wooyoung back, making sure the gate was shut and locking it up so that the Players couldn't run out until the match was over. "Stop worrying about this. A little fire bluff isn't going to scare me, this is my specialty. Now go do your job and don't let this lady's bluff stop you."


	22. Ignis Ultorem

"Jongho!" Mari and Wooyoung yelled in unison, their faces smushed up against the cage bars as if they were attempting to get inside. The fight had long been started, more than just a few minutes had passed of the two struggling to come top as the winner. The crowd seemed to enjoy the accidental show the Seo and Lee Faction had planned, on the edge of their wits and seats as the Players dragged it on. Every time CB97 would attack, the Watcher's would explode into a frenzy, unable to contain their excitement as their winner of choice attempted to move in for the kill.

Though, Jongho was a lot more nimble than he came off as. Every time his opponent would swing a right hook towards him, the Lee Faction boy would evade just as quickly as he was attacked. He was endlessly dodging his way to freedom, not even taking the chance to make his own attacks yet. In a way, Mari believed he was trying to wear down CB97's stamina. Yet he seemed to be filled with endlessly energy, not letting his guard down around the younger boy. He didn't underestimate Jongho at all, and while that would be confidence boosting in any other situation, it wasn't in this one. He had the possibility of dying.

Jongho yelped all of a sudden when he was taken off aback when CB97 changed his attack method. He swung his right fist as normal, letting the boy sidestep away from him before using his left hand to take a hold of his head and use all the force he could muster at the moment to send him flying. He slammed headfirst into the bars, scratching up his skin and giving him a few bleeding cuts from the metal. He hissed at the pain, probably gaining a god awfully head from the impact.

"Jongho," Mari called, sidestepping along the bars to quickly reach him. Wooyoung quickly followed after him, his eyes near leaving the other Player as he began to approach the Lee Faction boy. He didn't seem to notice the two running towards him on the other side of the cage, too busy trying to soothe his aching head as quickly as possible. "Jongho, you're going to die like this. Keep dodging and he's just going to keep predicting where you're going to stand next. You have to attack him at one point, even if you don't miss."

He groaned, glancing up at the two with annoyance. "You think I haven't realized that by now? I just don't know what's going to be my most effective— Woah!" Jongho yelled, sliding away from the duo as CB97 grabbed him by the leg, pulling him closer to him with an immense amount of strength. Though instead of stopping where his opponent wanted him, Jongho pushed back on the force of CB97's pull, putting them both at a standstill for power.

His opponent practically snarled at Jongho, putting most of his strength into his hands to pick him off the ground. Mari and Wooyoung's eyes widened in pure shock as CB97 swung Jongho to the side, the boy's panicked expression evident on his face as he tried his best to land as gracefully as possible. He ended up landing on his side, skidding across the cold stone floor. The crowd of Watchers screamed in glee at the sudden attack, shaking the cage bars and chanting the Player's name as if he was a god in disguise.

Mari bit her nails, unsure of when and how Jongho was going to attack CB97. She looked up from where she stood, spitting a familiar face from the crowd. One of them surprisingly ended up being San, who was supposed to be in the position of a sniper at the moment. He was watching the fight with an unreadable expression, almost unamused the form of entertainment that was presented in front of him. He didn't seem to notice that Wooyoung and Mari were in the area, his eyes were too focused on Jongho. Watching him carefully through narrowed as if he wasn't the one getting pummeled.

The other one happened to be the Kim Faction woman they were against, her sly smile slowly turning into a sinister grin of sorts. Her eyes slowly rose from their spot in the ring, making completely eye contact with Mari's. Her fox-like eyes turned into crescent moons of evil Jongho let out an agonizing screech from in the arena, one that Mari refused to check the cause of. The woman, without breaking eye contact, slowly grabbed the skull pendant that hung around her neck. She held it up for the girl to see and tauntingly shook it in her hand. 

"She knew," Mari realized, resisting to slam her hands into the cage. "She knew all along we were in the Seo Faction, she was just screwing with us! God, we're so... so stupid!"

"Never mind," Wooyoung told her, grabbing her jacket sleeve and bringing her back down to the fight with him. Jongho had a large bruise on the side of his face, the side he had ended up landing on when his opponent had thrown him. He was holding his left arm as blood seeped through the creases of his hands, signally that he had been clearly Injured. "CB97 has some sort of small hand knife he's hidden on his person. He used it on Jongho and had that kid not squirmed his way out of that situation, he would have ended up with one of those large gashes we saw earlier."

Mari slowly processes his words in her head, the gears turning as she tried to clock back into reality. "What am I supposed to do with that information? It's too late to tell me now, we can't get into the ring!"

"We can't," Wooyoung admitted, before smirking and pointing in the direction that San was in. "But he can. He's a sniper today, remember? The bullets can fit through the cage bars if he gets the right timing. And if he can't do that? He can sneak around those guards at the gate, take them out, then take the keys. San is our ace, he'll find a way to either get rid of CB97 or help us do the job ourselves."

Mari thought about it for a second, her eyes darting between Jongho and up towards where San stood. Jongho had finally decided to attack despite his bleeding arm, letting the cut bleed up as he countered CB97's right hook instead of simply dodging it. He used his agility to quickly move his head out the way, instinctively coming back with an attack with his elbow and striking him in the face. It took his opponent off guard, his eyes widening and groaning at the pain he was enduring. Jongho seemed excited, though trying his best to conceal it, at his instinctive attack. 

"He did it, he hit him," Mari mumble as she took another look at San, trying to see if his expression had changed. Overall, the boy was still as blank-faced as before, his intimidating stare burning holes into the back of Jongho's head. Though it seemed like his interest was peeked, which was rather surprising to her as only a few days ago he believed the boy was guilty of being an accomplice to the accident. "You think he'll help? You know how he feels about Jongho and we haven't really spoken since..."

"He will," Wooyoung answered immediately as he watched CB97's expression swap from surprise to anger. He almost looked animalistic, snarling like a dog as he turned to face Jongho completely. He held his hands together in a fist, bringing his arms above the boy's and slamming it down as hard as he could. The entire crowd winced for Jongho, knowing a blow to the head for him could cause an even worse pain for his already aching head. Hell, the boy might come out of the match with some sort of head trauma if he survived. "He still wants his answers on what happened on the night he was ambushed. He won't let Jongho die like this."

Mari gave Wooyoung a skeptical look, unsure of what to say. "I hope you're right," She told him before sliding back into the crowd, attempting to reach the other side of the ring. She knew better than to question what Wooyoung believed about San, they knew each other better than she knew San herself. Even though Wooyoung and Mari were childhood friends, San was a friend he had made completely independently of her. He had put time and dedication into cultivating their close friendship, she really had no right to question what he knew about him and what he didn't.

She tried to keep herself close to the cage of the arena so she could keep her eyes on Jongho and his fight, but it was slowly becoming a struggle. The more she moved the more people began pushing in to take the empty space she had left. The Watchers didn't care if she was smaller than them or seemed like she was in a rush to get somewhere. If Mari was good at standing her ground, knowing when to shove people away from her to get where she needed to be, they would have trampled her by now. They were so mesmerized and invested in the fight Jongho and CB97 were having that their already low respect for others hit absolute ground bottom.

Mari stepped one a few toes to get some of the Watchers out of her way, purposely crashing into one of them and framing it on a random bystander when she had a chance. Though she didn't care about the string of chaos she was leaving behind as she spotted the back of San's head immediately picking him out from the crowd. "San! San!" She yelled, hoping her voice would carry despite the already loud atmosphere. "Choi San, you better turn your head around and look at me before I lose my mind!"

He seemingly shuttered at the sound of his full name, turning around with a look of disdain as he tried to find the culprit. Mari grinned as she slipped her way in between the last group of Watchers that were blocking her path towards him, grabbing onto his shirt sleeve and dragging him down to her height. He immediately jerked back on reaction, not expecting Mari to pop up out of what seemed like nowhere. "What are you doing—" He started, but Mari interrupted him before he got the chance to finish.

"You gotta help us, please," Mari begged, sliding her hand down from his sleeve to his hand. "We need you to help, you're the only way we can get him out of there. I made Jongho swear that he wouldn't kill his opponent but that guy in the ring right now might kill him if we don't do anything. Jongho is going to die, San."

San took a moment to think about the situation, trying to decide which one mattered more to him: the value of someone else or his own morals. She knew he didn't like Jongho, he didn't like her trying to give him the benefit of the doubt either. But Jongho held the possible answers that he was looking for and if Jongho died... who knows when he'd get the chance to even see someone who witnessed the accident. "I... don't want to. It makes my stomach twist and lurch at the thought of helping him."

"But if you help him, he can help you," Mari reminded. Somehow she needed to convince him that saving Jongho was the right thing to do, she just didn't have the best persuasion skills. "I know what I said was really screwed up. You're my friend and I should have taken your side but Jongho is just some sixteen-year-old kid who witnessed the exact accident that you were in. He's not your enemy, San. He may not have all the answers, he may not be the culprit when everything comes down to it... but he has more clues as to what happened than any other survivor of that crash has."

The two turned towards the cage when a gasp of pain sounded through the room, only to find CB97 covering his face with his hands. Slowly, a crimson liquid began to ooze down his hands. It dripped to the floor in a rhythmic pattern as the Player stood there in shock, the entire crowd of Watcher's gasping in response. Mari glanced towards Jongho, his back pressed up against the cage bars and a bloodied weapon in his hands. It was a small pocket knife of sorts, covered in the blood of not only himself but CB97 as well.

He slowly took his hands away from his face, shaking them as if the blood on them was water. The wound on his face from his last fight had been sliced open, fresh blood running down his face as he tried to wipe it off of him. CB97 turned his gaze towards Jongho, glaring lowly at the boy through his shaggy blonde hair. It was intimidating, the longer the fight went on the more animalistic and ruthless he was becoming. "You're going to really regret that one," He growled, speaking for the first time the entire fight, audible enough for everyone to hear him.

The Watchers screamed at his sudden voice reveal and were even more amped up for the fight to continue. There was a high chance that CB97 was going to kill Jongho already, but this just solidified his fate. Their enjoyment of the fight was making Mari more uneasy about the situation as they continued to cheer, sending goosebumps down her spine. Clearly, the true Watcher of the Utopia had no morals or principles they wanted to uphold. When they entered the Utopia, they came for the bloodshed and the bloodshed only. 

"Do you have your gun on you?" San asked her, breaking her daze and bringing her back to reality. When she nodded in response, he quickly turned around and started rushing towards a mezzanine that was close to them. "This is turning into a very dangerous situation and as much as I don't like him, even I know my limits. If CB97 gets his hands on him, his death will be a cruel and terrifying one." 

Mari quickly followed after him, wasting no time now that San was on board with saving Jongho. She glanced by for a few seconds, spotting Wooyoung rushing towards the side Jongho was currently on. To give him some pointers? Maybe some tips on how to stall CB97 for a little bit longer until their help arrived? She didn't know and she wasn't really focused on it at the moment. Mari had to make sure she kept up with San, who was practically dashing towards the mezzanine. "Why are we going here? What's over there?"

"You see that building on the mezzanine?" He pointed towards, slowing his pace as they got closer to the stairs. "I was placed there as a sniper for this mission. Easy access to the two cages where you, Wooyoung, and a few other members of the Factions had been placed. It was just in case any accident happened while you all were down there and since they won't let me fight up close because of my wounds, they stationed me here."

She nodded as the two climbed the stairs, slowly getting higher above the rest of the Players and Watchers. "I'm going to try and shoot down CB97 from where I am. It's the only way for me to end that fight without anyone knowing I was there. I want you to take aim towards the guards at the gate and injure them, it doesn't matter how, so they can't stop either someone from the faction or Wooyoung from unlocking the door and getting inside."

"You made all of that off the top of your head?" Mari questioned, amazed by his quick thinking in such a scenario. "Wow, you're a lot more competent than I remember you being." He rolled his eyes at her, not bothered by her teasing. Though his usual smile began to don his lips, a friendly vibe radiated off of him once again. She forgot how warm he was when he was being nice.

Mari stopped completely when they reached the floor of the mezzanine that had the building on it, peering through the glass only to see darkness on the inside of the room. "I need you to wear this mask for me, I'm going to be in the building taking a shot, but I need you outside to take aim at the guards and warn me if anyone is coming," San told her, opening the door of the building and switching on the lights. He began to search for the mask in question as Madi walked inside cautiously, inspecting all that was going on.

The room was rather empty, only a table with a few chairs surrounding it in the middle of the room. Not the mention the rather large, black sniper that stood on a tripod in the corner of the room, it's muzzle pointed towards the window. "When did you learn how to use a sniper rifle anyways?" Mari questioned, her eyes glued to the large gun. She didn't remember ever talking to San about any sort of training for him to be a marksman. That's the type of information usually they'd share with each other. 

"I'm the faction's ace, remember?" He replied, opening a drawer from one of the cabinets in the room. He dug around inside of it for a moment before pulling out a black mask that would cover only her nose and mouth but would hide her identity nonetheless. "Plus, the Underboss likes me. He makes me do a bunch of stuff because he thinks I have potential or something. Now put this one and go take your aim. Once I fire my shot, you fire right after. Got it?"

She nodded as she was quickly ushered out the room back onto the mezzanine. "Take your aim, and fire right after him," Mari mumbled, placing the mask on her face and putting her hand on the pistol on her waist. Her eyes scanned the crowd of Watchers and Utopia for a moment, not spotting anyone from the allied factions or any suspicious that could interfere. "This is the easier job I've had in a while."

Mari took the gun out of its holster, spinning the weapon around her hand by the trigger guard. She couldn't see as far as San can, her gun couldn't enhance her sight for a more accurate shot. Yet she relatively knew where the guards where the memory of Jongho passing through the gate very fresh in her mind despite the current events. She held the grip of the gun tightly, holding one finger over the trigger as she tried to spot the guards at the gate as best as she could from the distance she was in. Once she trusted her judgment, she held her other hand below the grip, supporting her balance of the gun for the kickback.

"I've got two shots, I better make this the best damn shot I've taken in my life." Mari narrowed her eyes as she hyper-focused on one slightly blurred individual in the crowd, taking a wild guess and assuming they were one of the guards. They weren't moving from their position like the rest of the crowd, standing beside what she believed to be the gate to cage two as well. This was the one shot she was putting all of her faith into, she had to make it count. 

Just as she got into the groove of things, a scent entered her nose. It was a charred, burnt type of smell and it was very slowly beginning to waft through the air. The glass of the building suddenly shattered, the noise shaking her from her thoughts as San took his shot. Not long after the scent came about and San took his shot, there was a smoke cloud that was coming into her line of sight. It seemed to be coming from behind her, the scent much stronger in the cloud of smoke than it was before. Mari frowned as her focus was interrupted and took a random shot, hoping that it was going to hit the target.

The kickback forced her back from her original spot just slightly, as she was still slightly inexperienced with a gun in these sorts of situations. It called for her full undivided attention and she wasn't really having the best time at the moment. Instead of firing her second bullet, she turned around to inspect what was happening behind, pulling down her mask in frustration. She was annoyed whatever had dared to interfere with her concentration.

Though she was greeted by a blazing fire behind her, engulfing anything flammable that it could reach. Mari dropped the gun on instinct, watching as the orange flame scared off anyone who was fortunate enough to get away from it. In a way, she was slightly mesmerized by the orange flame, it’s large smoke cloud covering the entire ceiling and infecting the lungs of everyone in the room. “Holy shit... she was serious about burning this place to the ground.” She mumbled, watching the embers fly through the air.

“What’s going on— oh,” San asked, opening the door of the building, immediately catching the sight of the fire that was tearing the building down. Watchers and Players alike began to flee for their lives as they rushed through every exit they could, letting the Utopia burn without even calling for police and firefighters. It’s not like they could do so anyways, the Utopia was an underground fighting ring and a negotiation location for gangs and mafias. If anyone caught wind of the Utopia, everyone who ever entered the building would be hunted down and arrested. “We gotta go, if we stay here we’ll either suffocate from smoke inhalation or burn alive.”

She nodded, crouching down to grab her gun before she made a run for it. Though a thought entered her mind before she let out a gasp. “Holy shit, Wooyoung, and Jongho!” Mari yelled, forgetting the gun and pulling the mask back over her face. She immediately began dashing down the stairs as quickly as she could, leaving San behind in a flash.

“Mari, where are you going? The building is on fire! We have to get out of here!” San screamed, trying to catch her before she ran off too soon.

Mari glanced back over her shoulder for a second, turning to walk backward and face him. She pulled down the mask on her face before screaming as loud as she could, “I don’t think my shot hit anyone at the cage, Wooyoung is still over there. And Jongho! He’s inside the cage, San! Knowing Wooyoung he’s probably trying to help Jongho out of there, if I leave now they’ll die from the fire!”

“Why is everyone at risk of dying today?!” San yelled back, putting his arms up in the air in defeat. He tried to follow after her, but Mari was running on pure adrenaline now. Not only was the boy she’s trying to prove innocent at risk of burning alive, but so was her childhood friend. Sure San could care less about the existence of Jongho, but she knew that I’d Wooyoung’s life ended, either of them would be able to forgive themselves. And Mari refused to lose someone important to her again.

By the time she had made it into the crowd of Watchers and Players again, it was pure chaos. When the duo had entered the Utopia, everything was organized neatly into several groups of controlled chaos. Despite everything being disarray, everything knew where it was wanted and wasn’t wanted. But now, every single person inside the Utopia was fleeing the building. It became a fight for survival, and no one was afraid of trample over someone else in order to keep themselves out of harm's way.

Instead of Mari being the one pushing and shoving, it was vice versa. She couldn’t even stand still without some cowering Watcher literally throwing themselves into her personal space just to reach whatever exit they could find. Mari was on the verge of losing her mind with how horrible the people of Utopia were. “Focus Mari, you need to get to cage two. That’s your goal, focus on the goal.” 

Something crashed to the ground behind her, it’s thud ringing loudly through the building as it did so. The smoke and embers flew past her at the sudden acceleration of the window, infecting any unfortunate bystanders of its flames or its smoke. She could only assume that the building was falling apart now, unable to hold itself up as the interior of the warehouse gave way to the flame. “Fuck, fuck, fuck! Focus Mari! Jongho and Wooyoung need you to ignore the entire calamity in the background!”

She pushed forward as best as she could inspect the falling debris and the flames that threatened to get closer to her. She had Wooyoung and Jongho in her sights by now, doing exactly what she had said they were. Her aim had been off, resulting in Wooyoung not getting the keys of the gate to let Jongho out. He tried his best to try and open the gate, pulling on it as hard he can and attempting to lock pick the door. Jongho stood on the inside of the cage, his eyes full of panic and horror as he shook the gate as hard as he could as if that would help him escape the cage.

She took a few steps towards them before the ceiling above them began to crackle and cave in on itself. Wooyoung turned to the side to catch sight of her, his face immediately brightening up with relief as he struggled with the gate once again. “Mari, I can't get him out. I... I have no key, I can’t get him out!” He exclaimed, the panic clearly getting to him. She would have responded, she would have attempted to help them with their situation, but she didn’t get the chance to. Not then the flaming roof finally gave in to the fire, falling to the ground fast and blocking her path.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Mari screamed, though muffled by the mask that covered her face. “Do I just have the worst luck of what!?” She cursed, turning around to try and spot San, hoping he had somehow caught up to her. Though instead of her trust of her trusty second best friend, she was greeted by someone entirely new. There was a black figure that stood among the flames behind her, clearly humanoid by the way they were shaped. They slowly began to walk towards her, as if an entire fire wasn’t blazing behind them.

“Oh, woah sir you must be really hot in that,” She mumbled, reaching for the gun she was supposed to have on her. The figure clearly wasn’t friendly, definitely not friendly if they were coming in the direction of the fire. On their entire black attire was the familiar skull brooch of the Kim Faction, it’s crimson red flowers gleaming in the light of the fire. Mari did a quick pat down of herself once she realized her gun wasn’t in her holster, remembering that she had left the weapon on the now probably in flames mezzanine. She had no weapons on her now, not even a little pocket knife to save her. “Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck...”

The Kim Faction member wore a mask on their face, hiding their facial features so she couldn’t tell who they might be. They wore a jet black hat on their head as well, completely obscuring their entire head except for their eyes. Though all she needed to see was their eyes to know that they were enraged, vengeance in their eyes as they walked towards her. She could only assume that it was someone from the masquerade party two months ago. Crazy, the match to these sudden new flames of hatred of the two factions only started two months ago.

Slowly the Kim Faction member began to raise their arm, a gun their gloved hand and holding their finger right over the trigger. The member knew she was a part of the Seo Faction and now intended to kill her if the fire didn’t kill the month of them first. Mari, who was still running on pure adrenaline from the fire and her friend’s potential demise, decided to act before they could. 

With a burst of pure energy in her body in the new life or death situation, she grabbed the wrist of the Kim Faction member and forced their arm towards the sky so that she wouldn’t get shot in the process. They seemed shocked by her taking initiative but weren’t completely phased by her attempt to disarm them. She tried to twist the gun out of their hand, loosening their grip on the handle so she could easily slip it out of their hand. Though they retaliated by pulling their arm towards themselves, causing her to stumble forward before slamming their elbow on her head.

She fell to the ground with a heavy thud, groaning in pain at the sudden attack. Though Mari forced herself to push past the pain, grabbing her enemy's legs and pulling them from underneath them. They tumbled to the ground as a result and let go of the gun, letting it fall to the ground without any shooter at its grip. Mari got off the ground as quickly as she possibly could, reaching for the weapon before the Kim Faction member could. The girl was yanked back by her hair, yelping at the pain of the tug as she was pulled away from it. 

The Kim Faction member shoved her to the side, a little too close to the fire for comfort, reaching for what’s as original as theirs. On a complete whim, Mari found a small piece of debris on the ground, it wasn’t ablaze like everything else in the room which made it rather easy to use to her advantage. She slid it over to the safer part of the ground before using all the strength in her leg to kick it towards the gun in question, sliding away from the Kim Faction and into the flames. If she couldn’t use it to defend herself, neither of them could. It seemed like a fair game to her. 

The Kim Faction member quickly low swept her, knocking Mari off her feet and almost falling into the flames. They caught her just before her face could hit the flames, though still feeling the heat that the fire produced as she was so close to it. They grabbed her by her jacket collar, meaning the two were face to face in fits of rage. “You killed my allies,” They said through the mask, though their words were quiet and muffled. She could barely identify what they were speaking to her in the first place. “Now I’m going to kill you.”

Mari slowly began to get her footing as they took the time to talk, smirking to herself as she did so. She wrapped her arms around their neck once she got her footing back, slamming her knee into their stomach with as much strength she could muster. Their eyes widened in shock as they let go of her, doubling over in pain as they tried to get over the aching as quickly as possible. “Piss off.”

She needed to find a way towards Wooyoung and Jongho while she had the chance. A strike to the stomach is painful, but those with high pain tolerance can recover some such a blow much faster than others. There was a small pathway that hadn’t been engulfed in flames, yet risky as that’s where most of the debris was falling down from. Though with the only clue to her mother’s attack and her friend’s life at risk, she might just half to take the chance. 

The ceiling about her began to cage in again, the fire completely covering the debris as it fell to the ground. Mari cursed her breath as it fell straight towards her and the path she was trying to take, she wouldn’t be able to make it past once it fell. She flinched when she felt hands push her towards the path, practically launching her forward faster than she originally was trying to go. She stumbled a little as she tried to regain her balance, not wanting to fall into the fire after all this hard work to survive.

Mari basically held her breath as she stood only inches away from the fire, turning around to catch the Kim Faction member standing on the other side of the path she was taking. They were covering their forearms in pain, clear pain in their eyes, they tried to overlook what she assumed was burns in their skin. “You die by my hands.” They hissed, almost growling at Mari as they watched her from the other side. Behind them appeared several Kim Faction members covered in all black as well (probably roasting in their matching outfits), staring her down with the same flame in their eyes. “No one else’s.”

Mari narrowed her eyes towards them, knowing that they had saved her from being crushed by falling debris because they wanted to kill her themself. She felt herself smile under the mask, though it quickly turned into a taunting smirk as she thought about it more. They let her off, and she was going to make them regret their decision. She slowly raised her hand above her head before making an “L” shape with her hands. A childish act, yes, but an act that can get on anyone’s nerves. Without hesitation she quickly turned on her heel and ran, searching for Wooyoung and Jongho so they could get out of the roaring fire while they could.


	23. All to Zero

"I did as much searching as I could for you," Yeosang explained, handing Mari a manila file folder. She cautiously took it in her hands, examining the file closely as he continued to talk. "The Underboss was very adamant on keeping this information for himself, just in case any potential spies on the inside tried to figure out what we're planning. I was able to get my hands on it after talking to a few soldiers and associates that work closely with him, just make sure to keep this under wraps."

The file Yeosang had handed her was completely official, the mark of the Seo Faction stamped onto its cover in blood red ink. It was a deck of playing cards, though the ace card had been replaced with the figure of a viper on it. Just like the Kim Faction, they had their own insignia of sorts they used to identify themselves, but they didn't flaunt it around on accessories as the rival faction did. They only used it to make sure important information that came from the Underboss, Consigliere, or the boss themselves was authentic. 

"And this is absolutely everything I need to know about those guys that attacked me at the Utopia?" Mari questioned him, standing in the doorway to her room. It had only been a day since the Utopia incident, where the fight club burned to the ground thanks to Kim Faction's destructive ways. She and her little trio had all escaped the warehouse before it finally collapsed on itself and burnt to a crisp, just barely without any more injuries.

Jongho had immediately been taken in by the Lee Faction the moment they reached the rendezvous point away from the chaos around the fight club. He was the most injured out of the distraction trio, sustaining several wounds from his opponent in the ring. Mari didn't even get to thank him for his continuous perseverance in such a horrible situation he had been placed in. The entire faction has surrounded him and their fellow harmed members in a quick frenzy, engulfing them into their ranks and quickly escaping the scene.

Mari and Wooyoung met up with San, who had been standing on the outside of the rendezvous waiting for their return. It would have been a cliche moment of them coming back together and apologizing to each other had Wooyoung decided to hang on for just a little bit longer. He had dropped his knees in a heartbeat, wheezing and coughing as he struggled to intake the clean air outside of the warehouse. The Underboss and a few other members of the faction came to his aid, helping him off the ground as he continued to cough.

He and Jongho both had been standing in the building without any protection on their faces, exposed to the fire and inhaling the fumes absentmindedly. They had held out for a while and most likely intended to make it look like they were fine until they were in private. Mari didn't know about Jongho's situation, but Wooyoung didn't last very long. They whisked her friend away immediately to try and get him the treatment he needed as soon as possible, leaving both San and Mari in the dust. 

"Well... not everything," Yeosang commented, breaking her thoughts with his voice. "The group that had attacked you seems relatively new, the faction has never seen a unit like this come together to target one person like assassins. Plus due to the fact that you couldn't describe to us their facial appearances... we couldn't track them down individually. We currently only have small amounts of information that our intelligence team could actually find."

"I was wondering why this was so thin," Mari mumbled, opening her door wider so that Yeosang could enter. "I guess we have a lot to talk about then. Oh, and Wooyoung is here too but he's asleep so try not to be too loud."

"Wooyoung?" Yeosang questioned, his voice immediately adapting to Mari's request as he walked inside. He dug his hands into the pockets of his oversized jacket as he looked around for the said boy. "I thought he was supposed to be on the other side of the manor with the new doctors the boss hired? There is a makeshift hospital wing on that side until the new building for the injured is done with construction."

"Yeah I know," She shrugged, closing the door behind her as he entered. "He escaped in the middle of the night and ended up coming here asking me to hide him. I was too tired to say no so I let him in." When Mari turned to the boy, she caught him staring at her bed in slight disgust. That's where Wooyoung was, taking up half of her bed space by being sprawled out like a starfish. "I was worried when I first let him in since I didn't know if he needed any of that... oxygen mask stuff. But he jumped right in my bed and fell right asleep."

"This must be a normal occurrence," Yeosang questioned, leaning over her bed and poking at Wooyoung's face as he slept. The boy paid no mind to his pestering, his deep sleep unable to be disturbed. When he noticed that her friend wasn't going to awaken from his slumber, he shoved his hands into his giant jacket pockets and turned towards her. "Why would you let him in your bed of all things, just make him sleep on the floor."

"That's not what friends do, Yeosang," Mari responded, giving him a skeptical glance as she sat down on the edge of the bed. "I've never made him sleep on the floor, even when we were kids. They were like... sleepovers that weren't really sleepovers because Wooyoung was practically living with us like he is now. We'd stay up forever just messing around with each other until one of us knocked out or my dad and mom would force us to sleep. It was... really nice."

"Was?" He questioned, opting to lean up against the wall instead of attempting to survive the mess that was her bed. "What do you mean was?"

"For starters my mother is dead and we don't know the exact culprit of the attack," Mari replied, sarcasm dripping off of her tone. She opened the file as she spoke, only finding a few papers inside with even less information on it. There were pictures of people from the Kim Faction clipped to the papers, either circled in red or covered in question marks. These must have been all the potential suspects for the new unit the rival faction had acquired. "But when we were kids, Wooyoung's parents were also around and it quite nice for kids in elementary."

She zoned out at the thought of the two as children, an immediate warm feeling in her chest. His parents were nice when the two were younger from what she could specifically remember. His father wasn't the most significant person on the planet, in fact, his entire existence was a blur to Mari due to him clocking out once he found the chance. Wooyoung's mother was really nice to her, in certain ways the woman reminded her of his personality. "Then everything just sorta... crashed down when we hit middle school."

"Are you talking about that accident that happened a few years ago?" Yeosang questioned as he began recalling some information that he knew. "I heard about it from the Underboss not too long ago while he was visiting the Kang Manor. I think it was in relation to your mother's death? Is there really a connection between the two?"

"No, there's no connection," Wooyoung answered, making the two turn towards him in shock. He didn't make a sound earlier to alarm her off his awakening, she assumed he was stuck in his deep sleep. How much did he hear? She could assume that he most likely heard the entire conversation, waking up the moment Mari left the bed to answer the door for Yeosang. "It's just an ironic situation that's all. I guess the Kim Faction just has an affinity for murdering mothers of children right? How funny is that?"

Yeosang gave him a strained smile, clearly unsure of how to respond to his words. The corner of Wooyoung's mouth curved into a smirk at the boy's hesitance before turning towards Mari. "I interrupted, I'm sorry. Please continue, this is such an interesting topic I just couldn't help intervene." 

Mari glared at the boy's knowing smile, unraveling the folder so she could open it up again. "Thank you... now back to what we were talking about before we got sidetracked. Are there any current big leads that could help us learn more about them? I'm assuming the Underboss is going to try and copy their methods so that we don't get left behind in the dust." She questioned, moving the photos of the unfamiliar suspects on paper. 

"Not exactly? It's hard trying to dig up information about them. We would have gone back to the Utopia to search for clues, but the entire place is down." Yeosang answered, attempting to soothe his head of whatever headache seemed to be arising. "The Kim Faction didn't leave a single thing behind, anything that could have been used as evidence to track them is gone."

"Well... if it makes you feel any better," Mari began, quickly skimming over the folder once more. There was nothing much of interest in the papers, it sounded like a police report summary in a way how it tried to disclose as much known information as possible. Wooyoung motioned his hands towards the folder, silently asking her to give it to him. She did so absentmindedly, her attention mostly being focused on Yeosang. "During the encounter, I had with one of them they got hurt from falling debris, he's probably still injured from the impact and flame. It was on his forearms... the right arm more specifically." 

"I thought you said they were covered up completely to disguise themselves?" Yeosang questioned, recalling the information she had given to the Underboss after the mission.

Mari rolled her eyes, grabbing one of her pillows and throwing it towards his face. "Fire burns idiot. Part of the ceiling was burning and fell on him, I think that would hurt a lot and, I don't know, burn his skin!" Yeosang just narrowly ducked out of the way of her pillow, letting it hit the wall inside of his head. "You're supposed to be the smart one, Yeosang. Use your head."

"Hey... Mari?" Wooyoung asked, completely out of the blue. She turned her head towards him, meeting his gaze almost as immediately. He held out his arm and tapped to his wrist while a skeptical look on his face began to grow. "Where did this come from?"

"What are you talking about?" Mari snorted, glancing towards her wrist in confusion. Though she stopped moving at the sight of the tattoo on her wrist: the small sun, moon, and stars staring right back at her. "Oh. How'd that get there?"

The girl was practically screaming inside of her head, her brain going into panic overload at the sudden situation she was in. She had totally forgotten about the permanent tattoo on her skin, going about her life as if it wasn't there to begin with. Mari never gave herself the chance to tell Wooyoung and San about it due to the moment of chaos that had ensued not long after it. Her brain must have automatically assumed that they would have never noticed. "Mari, you don't just wake up one day and suddenly you have a fresh new tattoo on your skin."

"You have a tattoo?" Yeosang questioned, an annoying smile growing on his face as he spoke. He attempted to cover his face, hiding his laughter as best as he could. "You did that without your dad's consent? I'm surprised, I really am. I know you're rather assertive with yourself but this is a whole new level of confidence." 

Mari glared at Yeosang, almost growling at him to back down out of the conversation. "Look, it's okay! I mean, you guys didn't find out till now, so my dad won't figure it out any time soon either. Recently we've been kinda distant so that makes my chances of surviving without a lecture skyrocket!"

"That's not my problem," Wooyoung argued, taking her wrist in his hand and pulling her towards. "I could care less about whatever your dad says or does. My problem is that you went out and did this without telling anyone, without telling me! When did you even get this? This doesn't look like it's completely brand new." He complained, trying his best to get his point across.

Mari thought about it for a moment, trying to get her numbers right. "It's been about... a full week now? I promise, I planned on telling you and San at one point but it just didn't seem like the time. Hongjoong coaxed next into getting one as some dumb coping mechanism—"

"Hongjoong?! The biker boy? You let a boy you've barely known for a month make you get a tattoo?" Wooyoung complained. Yeosang whistled in response, watching the two argue with each other from the sidelines. He seemed slightly assumed by their bickering but thankfully kept himself out of the situation. "Mari, are you serious right now?"

"What's your problem, Wooyoung?" She snapped, snatching her wrist away from him in retaliation. "I'll have you know it's been more than a month since I've met him! It's been.... like two months.... but that's not the point. Why are you so hyped over this whole ordeal, it's not even that serious! The tattoo isn't that big and Hongjoong for the same exact as I did. Are you mad I got my first tattoo with him? Are you jealous, Wooyoung?"

Wooyoung opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. He let it hang open for a moment longer, thinking about what he was going to say next before responding. "I am not obligated to answer that question. However, I don't understand how you can trust him so easily. You said you've known him for at least two months and you went and got matching tattoos with him? What if you end up falling out in the next week? Now you've got a stupid drawing on your arm that you can't even get rid of because you trusted some random stranger too much."

Yeosang winced in response to Wooyoung's words, averting his gaze from the two to keep himself out of the situation as much as possible. Mari couldn't help but scoff, irritated with her friend and trying to contain herself from saying something bad. "You know you're being a huge asshole, right now? That's okay, I'm done. It's whatever." She told him, turning to get off of her bed and snatching up a jacket that laid on the floor.

"Mari?" Yeosang questioned, stepping forward to try and talk to her. Though she only ignored him, grabbing whatever shoes she could find and making her way towards the door. "Mari, where are you going? You have a target on your head right now, leaving alone could get you killed. Don't walk out just because of some petty fight."

"Oh no, don't worry," She told him, reaching for the door handle and giving the boys a strained smile. "My safety isn't that important to Wooyoung. He's just jealous I did something without him for once. It's fine if I end up dead on the highway he won't care. He's too busy groaning about a tattoo I got with a friend."

Wooyoung's head dropped slightly, regretting his words almost immediately after he said them. "Mari, I didn't mean—"

"Don't talk to me," She quickly interrupted, not even sparing a glance at him as she waved towards Yeosang in a lighthearted manner. Yeosang glanced between the two with worry, trying to find the right words to say before she left. "If you need me, I'll be out and about in the city. Maybe I'll even hang out with Hongjoong since Wooyoung likes him so much. Tell Jongho I said hi if you see him by the way!" She laughed, digging in her pockets for her phone and immediately powering it off completely. "Bye Wooyoung, have a nice day. Tell San I'm gone." And with those words, she closed the door.


	24. Zero to One

"Goddammit, Yeosang!" Mari cursed, her back pressed up against a tree as she tried to keep herself hidden. She was practically sweating from head to toe, her jacket nearly falling off her shoulders and her hair in a disheveled frizzy mess. She had been running for at least twenty minutes after getting ambushed while out of her manor. The same group of men that were dressed in all black were after her, catching her off guard when she had no one to help save her once again. "Maybe if he didn't jinx me before I left the house this would have never happened."

She was rather far from the Seo Manor as she had aimlessly walked in one direction to get away from the mafia infested household. Mari didn't pay attention to where she was going, focused purely on her petty argument with Wooyoung. She was still angry about what happened, though she continuously went back and forth between whether or not she should be the one apologizing or not. Though she didn't get a chance to come to her conclusion, as if she was anywhere close to it when she was attacked by the newest unit of the Kim Faction.

They had chased her even farther from the Seo Faction's main base of operations, though they had no clue how far they were truly from it. The location of the faction's manor was a secret, information that they kept under tight wraps. Mari didn't have the option to turn tail and make a mad dash for her house even if she wanted due to the faction's location being a secret. Hence why she simply ran and hid and hoped that they would give up their chase due to her resilience.

The girl dug in her pocket as quietly as possible, searching for her phone to try and contact someone. Mari had powered off her device in order to keep both San and Wooyoung at bay, knowing how the two boys would probably blow up her phone begging her to come back. "Where is it, where is it. I know I brought it with me..." She mumbled to herself, unable to make out the phone's figure in the darkness of the night.

She froze when she heard the grass rustle, signaling that someone was trying to approach her hiding place. They were getting dangerously close to where she hid, but she didn't have the choice to run and find another place. They'd see her the moment she decided to start running again. "You, idiot! You lost her!" A feminine voice yelled, scolding their partner for their mistake. She wasn't there when Mari had initially started getting chased down, so the woman must have just arrived. "That's what happens when you scream at a child, it scares them away!"

She recognized the voice of the women, her mind focusing on the Kim Faction woman she had met in the Utopia. She had claimed to be the benefactor of CB97 and told the little trio that the whole fight club was going to burn to the ground by the end of the night. Mari cursed under her breath and dropped everything she was doing. Of course, she was the one who was specifically targeting after her: Mari and Wooyoung had blatantly lied to her face, proceeded to unwillingly challenge her beneficiary, and even killed the Player off. She was reasonably pissed off.

"What else am I supposed to do?" A masculine voice asked, in almost a pouting tone as he responded to the foxlike woman. "She's not going willingly come to me, half of my unit tried to murder her on sight."

A light laugh filled the evening air, slowly morphing from its childish tone to a more sinister and silvery sound. "Oh it's quite easy, don't worry," She assured her partner, the grass beginning to rustle as they began to move around. "Children are very simple beings. You just... lure them gently and delicately. And when the time is right," A gunshot suddenly shot off, shaking the area around it with its sound and frightening any wildlife that was around them. Mari instinctively put her hands over her ears, trying to cover her ears as the woman spoke. "You put them to sleep."

"Oh..." The masculine voice replied, sudden confidence spiking in tone town. "Smart."

Mari cautiously took her hands off of her ears, trembling violently in pure anxiousness. She couldn't see them, but she could hear them. She could hear absolutely everything they were saying loud and clear. The girl had no clue whether they were bluffing, trying to get under her skin and drag her out that way instead. "Think Mari. Think you stupid idiot!" She cursed, trying to find a way out of her current situation. It didn't feel like she had any options to choose from.

"Little girl?" The woman called, the grass rustling as the Kim Faction members attempted to approach her. Mari tensed up trying to determine which side of the tree she'd appear on so that she would get an advantage on her enemy. "Sweetheart?" She called again as if she was truly going to respond to her. "Friendly benefactor... you aren't still mad at me about the Utopia, are you? I was just following orders from my higher-ups, I had no choice."

Mari nearly screamed when the woman rounded the corner of the tree, coming up on the girl's right unexpectedly. She immediately shoved the woman away from her, trying to put as much distance as she could between the two of them. The Kim Faction member was awfully calm when Mari placed her hands on her, dusting herself as if the Seo Faction girl was dirty. "I don't want to hurt you, won't your friends be sad if you suddenly became injured? I just want to talk, that's all."

With every step Mari took back, the woman would take another one towards her. She could tell she was hiding her malicious intent under a rather sweet looking face, repressing the urge to intimidate her with the pendant that hung around her neck. Where was her partner? The one that had been chasing Mari was nowhere insight, and that was nerve-wracking to know. With the Kim Faction so bluntly in her face now, that meant the unit member was using her distraction to strike Mari when she wasn't looking. "Back up grandma." She hissed, her back suddenly hitting a tree, stopping her from moving away.

The woman tried to ignore the girl's insult, though she was visibly getting frustrated with her. "No need to get so defensive! I just want to get to know you better, after all the fight never really wasn't finished at the Utopia and your beneficiary put up quite the fight. Let's play a quick game so we can be more acquainted with each other!" She tried to convince her, cornering her with her left arm so that she couldn't escape the other way. "Come on, let's play a game."

"And I said back off," Mari growled, grabbing a hand full of the woman's hair and yanking her towards the ground. The spike of pain from how hard she was pulling made the woman gasp, clenching her teeth and she tried to keep herself from showing weakness. There was a fire in her eyes as she glared at the girl with her foxlike eyes, reaching her hands up towards her throat in an attempt to choke her. "No hands on the merchandise." She scolded, bringing her knee up to strike her in the stomach.

The woman gasped once more the attack, dropping to her knees as she tried to soothe her aching. Mari let go of her the moment she landed on the ground, not wasting anymore more time and making a run for it. She didn't know how big the woman's pain tolerance was nor how fast she'd recover from her attacks, so she needed to escape as fast as her legs would take her. "Call someone. Call San, call Yeosang." She mumbled to herself as she began searching for her phone once more, pulling it out swiftly and turning it on. "Call Wooyoung, shit call Hongjoong! Just someone that can get you out of here as fast as possible."

A gunshot sounded off behind her, just barely whizzing past her head as her phone powered on. The girl glanced behind her to find the man in all black aiming his weapon at her, trying to get the perfect shot to end her life right where she stood. The woman slowly got back on her feet again, on the side of her hair tangled and frizzy from where Mari had taken ahold of. "I know what the boss said... but I want that girl dead by the end of the night!"

"Oh no," She mumbled as she began to pick up the pace, pushing herself to run faster due to her life now being on the line. Mari couldn't die, she didn't have the option to die at the moment. Not when her faction is struggling to find the culprit of the accident, not when she hadn't made up with Wooyoung yet. "Come on, come on! Who can get you out of their situation faster than anyone else?" She asked herself and she scrolled through her contacts. "Yeosang is busy with his father, I just fought with Wooyoung, I don't even know if San can drive!"

The last two options she had were her father and Hongjoong. Her father would end the contact in under a second once he found out she was being actively chased when outdoors, but that would take away all the freedom she had been struggling to gain. Mari would go right back to being like a trapped bird in a cage in that manor, she didn't want that. She'd do anything else than being stuck in her house like a dog on a chain.

"You've always popped up when I needed you and I didn't even know it," Mari mumbled, making a sharp turn on the grass to start running towards the sidewalk. Another gunshot went off behind her, though missing her completely due to her taking a sudden turn. Being out in plain sight would make it easier for bystanders to notice her situation and potential call for help. The Kim Faction members would also be at a disadvantage for openly attacking her with people around to see. "Now I know I need you, so you better pick up Hongjoong!"

So her phone started to ring as she tried to call him. The sun was beginning to set, nightfall slowly coming down overall who decided to stay out of their homes. There were a few people who were lingering out on the street, mostly minding their own business and going about their day. Mari made it her own personal goal to get them to notice her problem by barreling straight into their direction. "Pick up," Mari begged, nearly crashing into a stranger with their headphones on. "Pick up, pick up!"

Suddenly, a voice started speaking through the phone and it wasn't the automatic voicemail. "Princess! You're calling me? I thought you said I'd catch you dead before you ever tried to actually call me." Hongjoong teased, his voice light and feathery despite all odds. 

"Hongjoong!" Mari shrieked into the phone, stumbling slightly as his voice registered in her head. Never in her life did she think she'd be this happy to hear him talk to her. She turned around to find that the two Kim Faction members weren't following her anymore as if they had disappeared with the wind. Her eyes scanned the area cautiously as she walked backward, trying to check if she was safe or not. "I have no time for your teasing, I need your help. Please you're the only one I can call right now!"

There were a few seconds of silence before it was followed by the sound of keys being dragged across a marble surface. "I'm at Mingi's house right now, depending on how far away you are it might a few minutes to reach you if I follow the law," Hongjoong explained, sounding a little out a breathe already. There were a few voices that could hear in the background, assumably his friends asking where he was headed.

"Mingi's house?" Mari asked, remembering the last time she had visited him. She wouldn't say she was extremely far based on her surroundings, but it was going to take some time for him to get to her location. That is if he followed the rules of the road that were set up. "Remember that park you found me at? Where we decided to get those matching tattoos? I should be—" She explained before feeling arms snake around her neck into a chokehold.

"I'll take that, thank you very much." The woman's voice spoke, walking around her and grabbing her device out of her hands. She smirked and didn't even bother looking at who she was calling, ending the conversation and throwing the phone on the ground. Mari glared lowly at the woman in front of her, kicking her legs around as she tried to pry the man's hands off of her. "You've been a very naughty girl. Did your parents not teach you any manners?" The woman asked her, digging her heels onto the screen of Mari's phone.

"Fuck off!" Mark swore, only resulting in her chokehold being tightened. The woman laughed at her attitude as she made sure her heel was deep onto the phone and destroying it from functioning properly ever again. 

"You know I thought you and your friends were rather cute," She told her, slowly walking towards Mari. The man walked back in response, bringing her farther and farther into a darker and more secluded area. "Your little friend of the beneficiary was a funny little trick, I'll give it to you. But it was the boy who did all of the talking, not you. That's how I knew you were the weakest link out of the three."

She grabbed a handful of Mari's hair, forcing her to look up as she practically dug her nails into her scalp. "I wonder why the boss has been so intrigued with you? He's never seen you a day in his life and yet from what the other soldiers bring back, you're always a constant pest in our problems. I wonder if it was you who killed our Underboss a few months back. Our boss has never been interested in you until then."

"What the hell is your deal?" Mari gasped, her voice ever so small due to the lack of oxygen. "You saw what happened at the Utopia. Your faction burnt the entire place to the ground and nearly killed everyone there! What else do you want from the Seo Faction? From me? I don't even know who you are!" 

She smiled as she yanked harder on Mari's hair, leaning towards her face as she spoke. "My name is Jung Chaeyeon. And you've pissed off one of the highest-ranking Caporegimes of the Kim Faction. And despite what our boss says, I want you dead where you stand."

"Good luck trying then," Mari mocked, a smirk growing on her face as she sneered at the woman in front of her. "Because today just isn't your day."In the background there could be an increasingly loud yet deep engine sound approaching them, catching the two that held her back off guard. She opened her mouth and touched her tongue onto the man's arm, easily grossing him with her actions. Just when she made the motion to bite down on his arm, he quickly let go of her and shoved her towards Chaeyeon.

The woman stepped to the side in retaliation, trying to save herself from being crashed into. "What are you doing!" She yelled at the man, annoyed by his childish fears. Mari immediately regained her balance and started running towards the street again, pushing herself past her limits despite being tired from the amount of running she was doing. "Men are so useless! You can't do anything for yourselves!" The woman barked, turning red with anger as she took the gun away from her partner.

Mari turned around when she reached the end of the street, noticing how the Kim Faction member was getting ready to take aim at her. "This was a fun game of cat and mouse while it lasted!" She exclaimed, earning a confused yet annoyed look from the woman. The two rival faction members stopped what they were doing in a black motorcycle skidded to a screeching halt behind her, the driver with no helmet on and a disheveled look on his face.

"Get on," Hongjoong demanded, holding his hand out to Mari for her to easily get on the back of his bike. Both Kim Faction members seemed amazed by her sudden recuse, not knowing how to react as the girl batted her eyes towards them. Chaeyeon's eyes darted between her recuse and Mari, unsure which person she should shoot first.

"With pleasure," Mari responded, grabbing Hongjoong's hand and pulling herself onto the back of the motorcycle. The boy revved up the engine as the vehicle roared to life, smoke blowing out from the bike's exhaust pipe and its tires spinning in place. "See you later grandma! We can play a game another time!" She yelled as she grabbed onto the boy's arm for a somewhat of a safe ride. Hongjoong grinned as he rolled the throttle and forced the motorcycle to move toward, zooming the two away in a quick escape.


	25. Let’s Be Friends

The motorcycles screeched as it slid across the asphalt road, sending dust flying out in the air as Hongjoong slowed their movement down with his foot. The bike teetered at their weight as if it wasn't used to handling two people on its back before. Mari held on tight to the boy's arm, her hair looking similar to that of a bird's nest from the wind whipping her hair around. She looked up from where she sat, noticing a rather large and expensive house that sat in beside them. For a moment she thought Hongjoong had brought her to his house but after checking her surroundings she recognized it as Mingi's household.

"Mari, are you okay?" Hongjoong asked, immediately turning to Mari with a distressed expression on his face. His eyes scanned her face and arms for any sort of injuries and he subconsciously fixed her hair for her. "The call, it got me so worried you usually you aren't the one that calls first. You just decline all of my calls whenever I try so I knew there something wrong when I picked up and then you suddenly stopped talking and the phone hung up—"

"Calm down." She told him, placing her hands on his shoulders and shaking him a little bit. "I'm fine now, I only have a few bruises and scratches from running and nearly falling on my face a couple of times. But I'm okay, seriously. You practically saved my life back there and had you not come when you did I would be dead by now."

Hongjoong frowned, kicking the stand of the motorcycle to the ground to completely park the bike. He stepped off with a sigh that seemed like relief as he turned his head around towards her. "Who..." He began, trying to think about his words carefully. "Who even were those people? I was in such a rush that I didn't get to really catch any faces, but they seemed to be chasing you? They were even armed, princess, what the hell did you do?"

Mari didn't think this fair into her plan of escape. What excuse was she going to pull out of thin air to keep him from cluing in on the fact she was a lot more involved with violence than she let on. "You how life goes!" She exclaimed, spitting out whatever came to her head. "People are crazy nowadays and it was getting really dark. Plus, I do not look like the perfect victim to attack when walking alone?"

Hongjoong frowned, though Mari couldn't tell whether he had accepted her excuse or not. "Well be careful next time, okay? People like that are the type to not give up after just one failure, you could be specifically targeted by them if you leave alone. Where's that other guy... the one that had the gun that last time?"

"I'm concerned yet not surprised that you have to remember him with a gun when pointing him out to me," Mari mumbled, the memory of Wooyoung and Hongjoong fighting due to them being complete strangers still vivid in her mind. "Wooyoung and I got into a fight today and we both said some pretty bad things to each other that we shouldn't have. I didn't give him or myself the chance to apologize because I left the house without thinking."

"That sounds really weird." He told her, leaning up against his motorcycle as he spoke. "When you first introduced us, you said you two were childhood friends right? You two must have been really close to each other if that's as the case. So whatever this fight that happened must have been really serious."

"I wish it was!" Mari complained, rolling her eyes at the thought of their argument. "The whole thing was so petty and dumb, it shouldn't have turned into a fight in the first place! I forgot to tell him about the tattoo we had gotten and he had completely flipped his shit when he found out earlier today. Like seriously, you're going to get mad at me over a tattoo? He just sounded like he was jealous the entire time it got on my nerves."

Hongjoong didn't respond when she had finished. Actually, he hadn't spoken at all when she had started ranting to him, he had gone completely quiet. "Earth to lover boy? Are you there?" She asked, turning to him with a slightly concerned look at her face. He had his hands cover his mouth, trying to conceal the snarky and irritating smile that was growing on his face. "What is wrong with you?"

"This feels like an accomplishment," He told her, his smile turning into a mischief filled smirk. "Who would have known I have so much power over the way your friend feels? My mere name probably makes him tremble in his boots, doesn't it?"

Mari gave him a quick once over before rolling her eyes. "Yeah, right. Wooyoung is a lot stronger and smarter than he seems. He just finds you to be an annoying presence in my life. If he really wanted to, he'd probably would have kicked your ass by now." She countered, not letting Hongjoong's ego grow any more than it was. The girl may be mad at her friend now, but she wasn't going to let Hongjoong believe he really had the skills to genuinely intimidate Wooyoung.

"You'd be surprised at all the things I can do." The boy alluded, the mischievous smirk on his face never dropping. "There is much more to me than what meets the eye."

She immediately retaliated by flicking his forehead, putting more strength into the action than needed. "Shut up already." The boy yelped at the sudden hit, covering his forehead as he dropped to his knees in pain. "You're nothing more than a leather cladded idiot stop trying to fulfill some random fantasy." Mari scolded, earning a frustrated grumble from the boy as he raised himself off of the ground.

A door opened behind them, the noise loud and clear as if it had slammed onto a wall in the process. The two turned around in confusion, unsure of who or what was storming around so loudly in what was soon to be the middle of the night. "Hongjoong!" Mingi's distinct voice screamed from the doorway, it's deep yet loud tone could probably be heard from all the way down the street. He stood in the door frame with a confused and tired look, as if he had just woken up from his slumber just to start yelling. "What did you think you were doing running off with explaining yourself?!"

"Uh oh," Mari teases, glancing towards Hongjoong with an amused glint in her eyes. "Looks like someone is in trouble."

He glared at her as Mingi stumbled towards them, his actions fueled by exhaustion and frustration. "You can't just run off randomly like that and not even explain what's going on! What if this was really serious, huh? I would have been one of the last people to have seen you and your blood would technically be on my hands. What is it was—" He stopped halfway between his house and Hongjoong's bike, finally catching sight of Mari sitting there next to him.

She gave him an awkward smile, knowing that this was a rather unfortunate setting for both of them. The last time she had gotten in contact with Mingi was when she went to his party nearly a month ago. She had been completely off her game that day after Jaerin had sabotaged what could have been a decent and normal teenaged memory. The redhead had completely frozen in place as if his brain ceased all functionality at the sight of her.

"Is he okay?" She asked Hongjoong, glancing between the two boys with a skeptical look on her face. She waved her hand towards him to try and catch his attention but didn't get a response. Mingi looked as though he was still, lifeless statue in a museum. He didn't respond nor move no matter how hard she tried to snap him out of it. His brain had gone into emergency mode and didn't seem close to getting out of it. "This can't be a normal occurrence right? This will be the third time I've seen his personality do a complete one-eighty."

"Sorry about him!" An unfamiliar voice apologized, grabbing the boy by his shirt collar and pushing him out of the way. It was another boy, about the same height as Mingi, who had entered the fray. He smiled at her with a bright yet boyish smile, radiating around the same innocence Mingi had when she had first met him. "I promise, he's much more competent than he seems. He just woke up so he's currently not in the right mind for any sort of real conversation."

She recognized the boy just a little bit, her mind digging into the deepest memory she had of that little trio Hongjoong had when she first met him. "Mari, this is Yunho. You've seen him maybe... once or twice?" Hongjoong clarified for her, explaining his small friend group with her. "Granted the second time you don't even remember seeing him since you were drunk at the time..."

"Oh! That was you?" Yunho gasped, still holding onto Mingi's shirt collar as if he were a dog. The boy took a moment to think as he tried to pinpoint the exact memory of her in his head. "Oh yeah... that was you! I'm glad to see you are in good health now! You know I may not have known you very well at the time, but it was slightly frightening to see you in a drunken state. Promise me you'll never do that again okay? Not just for your safety, but for everyone you come in contact with."

"Woah, you're so nice." Her voice turned monotone at Yunho's words, not finding his teasing very funny. "Thank you for being so considerate of me and everyone who I'm around."

Yunho smiled at her again, his happiness shining down on her like sunshine. "Oh, you're welcome!" He didn't seem to take notice of her clear displeasure as he turned right back towards Hongjoong, almost forgetting he was pulling Mingi around like a rag doll. "So are you finally going to explain what happened for you to run out like that? Seonghwa told me I shouldn't worry about it but the way your face paled at the call was really scary. I thought it was... you know who."

"I was the one who called him," Mari interrupted, intrigued by the conversation Yunho was starting. "I was in trouble and needed some quick help so I called Hongjoong. Though I want to know who this other person that could have called Hongjoong was. It seems really interesting if you ask me."

"We'll talk about that later, okay? Right now I want to know what you want to do next," He told her, turning around to face her as if Mingi and Yunho weren't staring at him over his shoulder. They didn't have a hard time seeing him either, seeing as they were like two giant towards compared to Hongjoong. "I can take you back home if you want, though I'm not exactly okay with letting you walk back from that playground alone after what happened today. Or you could just stay here for the night and I'll take you back in the morning."

"What?!" Mari and Mingi yelled in unison, completely shocked by Hongjoong's suggestion. "You're joking, right? You're not actually suggesting she says over my house for the night. The last time she was here she had a traumatic experience with getting her drink spiked. I'm not going to be the cause of someone's anxiety attack. I don't even have any room for her." Mingi complained, regaining control of his brain as he spoke.

"The last time Mari was here you were holding a party with way too many people inside to keep an eye on her," Yunho pointed out, shrugging his shoulders in a carefree manner. "Plus! The only people here are just me, you, Hongjoong, and Seonghwa. I'm sure none of us have any malicious intent towards her or someone here would have their kneecaps broken in half." 

Hongjoong grinned at Yunho's assistance in his suggestion, turning to Mingi with an even brighter smile. "Your parents are out on a business trip to America as well, they won't be back for another month or so. And then at the same time, Seonghwa won't be staying for long because he has some of his own business to attend to in the morning. So it'll just be me, you, and Yunho here. And you've got tons of space in your house anyways Mingi, it's no big deal."

"If that's the case can I stay longer than a day?" Mari asked, batting her lashes at him for an added effect. "My friend lives with me at my house and I got into a huge fight with him... it'll be too awkward for me to be there since neither of us wants to be the first to apologize."

Mingi let out a deep sigh, assumably giving into their wants as he opened his mouth to speak. "Okay, fine! Four days. You can stay here for four days and then have to promise you'll go back home when it's over. I'm not the best at taking care of so many people so I really don't know if four days is even okay..." He compromised for them, pouting as he began mumbling to himself. He was awfully easy to convince, she honestly expected him to put up more of a fight.

"Perfect!" Hongjoong exclaimed his smile the widest she had seen yet. Yunho seemed to share the same enthusiasm he had as he grabbed Mari's hands and pulled her towards the door. She was taken back by his sudden movement, trying to keep up with him speaking and acting faster than she could handle. "I'll take my bike into Mingi's garage and you two can show her around the place. It's not my house so that's not my job to be a good host. Do you know where Seonghwa is?" 

"He's in the garage as well," Mingi answered as he followed right behind him. "He kinda expected you to run straight in there when you returned so that's where he's currently hiding."

"Hold on, I'm extremely lost, what's going on now?" Mari tried to ask, trying to keep up with Hongjoong's new burst of energy. "Can you run the whole plan by me again please?"

"Nope, in the house you go!" Yunho interrupted, opening the door to Mingi's home and nearly manhandling Mari inside. She felt like one of those small lap dogs with an attitude problem, practically barking at the two as they completely ignored her requests for an explanation. "It'll be fine, I promise! There are no drinks in here and there's no Jaerin! You're perfectly safe in Mingi's house so let's just go!"


	26. The Art of Lying

Mari lived in a manor so needless to say she was rather wealthy herself. Yet despite her expensive and lavish background, she was still extremely amazed by Mingi's house. The last time she had seen it the lights were turned off with LED lighting up the rooms with thousands of flashing colors. There were too many people in the house at the time due to the boy throwing an actual wild party full of teenagers and college students, so she could barely make out what her surroundings were besides the giant crowd of people that had surrounded her. And then at the same time, she did pass out drunk and didn't get to explore as much as she would have liked. 

So one could imagine the amount of surprise on her face when she had entered the boy's house, being greeted by pure white walls and chocolate hardwood floors. There were two large windows that were staring at the boy's large backyard, giving them a very clear view of the outdoors that made Mari wonder how she couldn't find the door to the backyard in the first place during the party. There were several white chairs and one sectional that surrounded a coffee table in the middle, with a grand expensive television hanging up on the wall followed by a few family portraits and baby pictures of Mingi hung up on the walls.

She had asked the boy how he had gotten so wealthy, being completely blown away by just his living room alone. He had given her a rather sheepish and shy smile, flattered by her amazement as he had answered her. "My parents have a lot of businesses they worked to cultivate when I was younger. They're sorta like... traveling entrepreneurs that are constantly making deals with smaller companies to bring them into their own. They also work with Hongjoong's parents as one of their major shareholders. Money comes in and out of the house a lot."

Mingi was odd. His personality didn't match his upbringing. Like Jaerin, he had been raised in a wealthy family that shared some sort of connection to Hongjoong's parents that most likely increased their wealth tremendously if the boy was as rich as she believed he was. Yet Jaerin was rather sly and smug in the way she carried herself, most likely using the money her family earned for her own personal gain like gifting Hongjoong presents to make herself appeal to him more. The only thing Mingi seemed to really do was throw parties when his parents weren't home, and even so, his house was still in contact despite how wild unsupervised parties could become.

Then again, Jaerin was a part of the Lee Faction. Her ego was absolutely through the roof because if any regular person tried to threaten her they'd end up dead on a highway the next day. So Mari did understand just a little as to why the girl was a bit too arrogant for her own good. 

While the group was waiting on Hongjoong to return from the garage, Yunho and Mingi had taken it upon themselves to keep Mari entertained. Though she was already preoccupied, staring at the several expensive objects in the living that she wouldn't dare buy and laughing at the silly baby pictures of Mingi that were hung up around sparsely. She couldn't help pointing out what she saw, comparing the boy's past appearance to his current one. They looked like two completely different people. 

"Oh, I remember this one!" Yunho exclaimed, taking a picture off of the wall without Mingi's consent. The boy nearly had a heart attack as the photo was removed, scrambling towards the boy to return it back to its original place. Yunho ducked out the way instinctively, dodging the red giant completely as he held a picture out to Mari. "This was around maybe... the end of secondary school? Beginning of freshman year for Hongjoong? This was way before any of us had met Seonghwa."

"You look like children," Mari responded, taking the photo from Yunho just as Mingi dove in to snatch it out of their hands. The girl pivoted out of the way, leaving Mingi to crash into the ground as she examined the picture quickly before the boy could take it from her. It was a picture of both Mingi and Hongjoong together, much more young-looking with full-on babyfaces. There was no wild color in either of their hair, the natural black and browns that most of the country adorned.

Hongjoong didn't have any tattoos that littered his left arm, neither did he have any excessive piercings that hung down from his ears as a sign of rebellion or whatever he called it. They were wearing school uniforms as well, uniforms that were usually worn by middle schoolers and public school high schoolers but uniforms nonetheless. He seemed really happy. "You two look so prepubescent in this it's almost scary. And that uniform, I don't think I recognize what school it's from."

"That's because Hongjoong was constantly moving schools when I was younger," Mingi explained, finally taking a hold of the picture. "He was a year ahead of me so in this picture he would have been in high school by then. I think this was some random public school on the other side of the country he went to, but it didn't last very long before he moved from that one again. This picture was from my graduation before I became a freshman though."

Mari nodded, listening to the boy's reasoning and letting it resonate in her head for a moment. "Why was he moving around so much? I can only imagine how god awfully hard that must have been for him if he was just a freshman when that happened. Aren't freshmen only like fourteen and fifteen? I would have thrown myself off a bridge."

"It was easy!" Hongjoong's voice called, making all three of them turn their heads down the hallway like a group of meerkats. He was light on his feet as he approached Mari, taking the photo out of her hands to look at it himself. A fond smile immediately began to grow on his lips as he recognized the picture as if a million old memories were flooding his mind. "I didn't make any new friends and kept in contact with the ones I already had. Soon enough I started doing dumb stuff to get my parents to stop moving around so much. First, it was skipping classes then skipping school entirely."

"Then it was sneaking out of the house late at night and doing a bunch of petty crimes," Mingi recalled, adding onto Hongjoong's list as he began to remember all the things had done. "Then it was getting your first piercings on the lobes. After that, you moved up to the inner part of your ears and moved up to helixes on both ears."

"Then you got your first tattoos and a thousand more piercings!" Yunho exclaimed, rolling up his shirt sleeve to point to the various places that Hongjoong had permanent art on his skin. "I'm surprised you didn't die from all that blood loss because then you decided why not learn how to ride motorcycles so you could escape the house quicker? The amount of times you fell off of those things and hurt yourself when you first started was scary."

"He basically was a devil child." A voice spoke, a figure practically looming over the boy's body. Both Hongjoong and Mari looked up to catch a glimpse of the person, both being rather small in height compared to the others they stood around. He was watching them through the black hair that hung in his face, his eyes shining with a slight glimmer of amusement as he glanced towards the picture in Hongjoong's hands. "You didn't even stop after they moved back. You just toned it down enough to not make them retaliate in a bad way."

Mari narrowed her eyes at the boy, trying her hardest to figure out where she had seen him before. He was so familiar she just couldn't put her finger on from where. "Mari, this is Seonghwa. Seonghwa, this is Mari. She's going to be staying with her for a few days with Mingi's permission."

His eyes dropped down to Mari as if he was judging her in his mind and reading into her thoughts. She remembered him though, leaving quite the impression on her. The first time she had unknowingly meet Hongjoong, he had been at the scene too. Seonghwa had gotten her position compromised and exposed her to the rest of the group. Seonghwa was the catalyst to her whole ordeal with Hongjoong. "Nice to meet you," She spoke, returning the hard stare he was giving her.

He seemed skeptical of her, the spark in his eyes practically glaring at her as she tried to figure her out wordlessly. Assuming Hongjoong had filled him in on her whole situation, he might be trying to figure out whether she was lying or not. Mari wasn't the best at lying on the fly anyways, which meant he could probably dissect her horrible alibi if he was really that determined. She needed time to patch up the holes in her lies before he tried to question her.

Though the suspicious expression he wore on his face quickly faded as if it was never there. A smile grew on his lips as he held out his hand to her, a strained due to him trying to put on a happy demeanor. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Mari." The boy replied, urging her to shake his hand. It seemed as though Seonghwa doesn't remember her, granted that their reaction was small and forgettable. He was focused on the present, not daring to even search his past memories for any sight of her. "Hongjoong talks about you sometimes but it's great to finally meet you in person."

"That last sentence didn't need to come out your mouth," Hongjoong told him, the smile on his face turning slightly more irritated than normal. He didn't seem to notice the awkward yet small tension that was slowly rising between Mari and Seonghwa as they shook hands.

Seonghwa shrugged his shoulders, clearly unbothered by the boy's slight attitude. "I did though and I have no regrets."

"Anyways," Mari interrupted, kicking her feet up on Mingi's couch to get comfortable. "This is a very eccentric group of people, we got here. We've got the rich boy, Mingi, we've got the biker boy, Hongjoong, we've got the sunshine boy, Yunho, and we've got you who I have no idea what stereotype you fit yet. How did all of you even become friends? So many different personalities are mixing together here it's interesting."

"That's like me asking how you became friends with that kid with the gun," Hongjoong told her, earning looks of pure confusion and intrigue. "It makes no sense but it happened, so I'm not questioning your friendship with him."

"I didn't ask for your opinion." Mari snapped, side-eyeing him for even bringing the topic up. "Now as I was saying—"

She didn't even get a chance to finish her sentence, not when the entire group suddenly began to swarm her with questions about Wooyoung. "Actually I'm more intrigued about the boy with the gun! Hongjoong mentioned him once before, he said he almost killed him with the thing!" Yunho exclaimed, grabbing Mari's shoulders and shaking her roughly.

"That was your friend?" Seonghwa questioned, his eyes growing wide with realization. "You're joking, right? How are you going to criticize us when your friend carries around a firearm like that isn't illegal? You've got some very controversial friends on your side."

Mari's ears were turning red as the questions never stopped coming, progressively getting more and more personal and teasing at her very hypothetical statement towards. They were all coming at her so fast that they could barely keep up and answer them. "I promise he isn't actually some crazy kid with a gun. He's actually really nice when he chooses to be. He's just very... uh... unique! I promise you he is Hongjoong is just an idiot."

* * *

Mari slumped against the patio sofa, a sigh escaping her mouth as she fell into its oddly comfortable seats. The entire house had gone complete silently a few hours ago, finally settling down and heading in for the night. Mingi had knocked out before everyone even expected it, leaving them all to watch him in bewilderment as he found peace in sleeping while nearly sliding off of the couch. Yunho had put it upon himself to help the boy into his own room so he continued his slumber, then proceeded to fall asleep right after him once the two had reached the top of the stairs. 

Seonghwa has opted to sleep on the couch, offering his room to Mari due to her being a first-time guest at the Song household. The entire group of boys snickered and jeered at his show of hospitality though the giant went somewhat unbothered. The only thing he gave them was annoyed and uninterested glares as he was trying his best to get along with her. Mari appreciates the efforts but would never say it out loud of course. 

Mari would have been asleep too had it not been for the guilt eating away at her soul every time she shut her eyes. The fight with Wooyoung was so irrelevant and minuscule, it shouldn't have been bothering as much as it did. Yet every time she got a moment of silence her thoughts would flood the entire room, screaming at her about all the wrong both she and Wooyoung had done to each other. It was deafening, and she was absolutely sick of it.

So she had decided to creep out of the room she was borrowing and towards the outdoors. Going through the front door would make too much noise as she would have to unlock it and somehow make it past a sleeping Seonghwa, and she didn't know how deep of a sleeper he was. She didn't want to take the risk and her motives were questioned by the already suspecting boy so Mari had turned on her heels and bolted straight for the back door.

She was lucky enough not to have made any noise while fumbling around the room looking for the back door, which was a lot harder than she expected. Mari expected to see every white thing in the living much more clearly than anything else, but she was as a blind as a bat. She swore she almost crashed into the same wall at least two times while searching around. Though she eventually made it out and made her way towards the patio, staring at the illuminated pool water as Mari tried to ease her thoughts.

"I can't even call him if I wanted to be the one apologizing," The girl grumbled, crossing her arms against the oversized shirt Mingi had let her barrow while she stayed over. "That woman destroyed my phone with her heels! That's some major girl power I can respect but no one can actually call me and vice versa. How am I even supposed to my own dad that my phone trashed by a woman who tried to kidnap me then kill me at the same time?"

Mari's eyes widened at the thought of her dad, cringing at the thought of returning to the manor to face him. How was she going to explain what had happened to him in a way that wouldn't make him overly protective of her? She had seen what he had done when her mother was around, near letting her go unsupervised in fear of what could potentially happen to her. Due to him recently losing his wife as well, knowing that his daughter and heir of the Seo Faction would make him completely flip the switch.

She couldn't even imagine what he might do, knowing that he went extremely far to keep her away from the Kim Faction's eyes. "I'm so... so screwed. There's no way I'm getting out of this..." She mumbled, running her hands through her hair roughly. She had no excuses, no alibis, no genuine reasons to convince her father to let her continue living the way she was. When Mari went back to the Seo manor she was going to be trapped there like a circus animal and her friends would receive punishments for letting her live her own life.

"You okay there princess?" Mari nearly screamed at the sound of Hongjoong's voice, scrambling back and away from where his voice had come from to put distance between the two of them. He stood next to where she had originally sat with a confused yet drowsy expression on his face, carrying a water bottle in one hand while his other hand was shoved into the pockets of his sweatpants. He was surprisingly still wearing the leather jacket he always adorned over the simple black shirt he was seemingly wearing to sleep. "I saw you from the window, you seemed stressed."

Mari rubbed her eyes to rid them of any sort of emotion that would give him the chance to tease her before responding. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about things." She told him, taking the water that the boy was urging her to grab. "I didn't know you were awake though? Everyone slowly started falling asleep one by one that I assumed you went to bed not long after Mingi did."

"Sleep is for the weak," He joked, falling into the cushion next to her. "I had gone to sleep earlier with everyone else, but I got a call a few minutes ago from my parents and couldn't go back to sleep anymore," Hongjoong explained, propping up his head with his arm as he glanced towards Mari. "I wish it was just a simple I love you goodnight call, but they stopped doing that a long, long time ago."

"I wish that was my dad," She snorted, unscrewing the cap of the water bottle. "If I had my phone right now he would have been blowing up my phone trying to figure out where I was and why I was there and then proceed to tell me all the things I should and shouldn't do while I'm there. And then end it with the blandest and boring goodnight text known to man."

"I wish I could say that's cute but you find it rather annoying," Hongjoong told her, trying to resist a laugh. "At least he cares about you and what you're doing you know? Some parents wouldn't even care if their child died without them knowing."

"Well yeah but...," Mari trailed off, not even taking a sip of the water given to her before placing it down on the glass table in front of her. "I'm definitely getting in trouble once I go home after this whole sleepover thing you all. I left the house without telling anyone in a fit of rage, got attacked by a group of strangers and proceeded to lose my entire phone at the same exact time. All without even telling him I left. I'm probably giving him a hard attack right now Hongjoong, the last person that left my house before something horrible happened to them was my mom."

"I remember you telling me about that," Hongjoong mumbled, recalling the summarized more patchy version of the story Mari had given him. She didn't give him all the details due to the majority of it being rather confidential, but he had a general idea of what had happened then. "If you need any help figuring stuff out before you go home... Yunho and I can help! I lie to my parents all the time, Yunho just helps add the believability to it so it doesn't sound like you're actually lying."

Mari snorted, rolling her eyes at the boy's suggestion. "Yeah, right. My dad wouldn't be the only one you're lying to, you know that right? You'd be lying to my two best friends who know me better than anyone in the whole world and my newest friend who has already picked up on my horrible habits to know when I'm lying or not. You've got to be an extremely liar to get past them."

"If I can get past your dad, I think I can get past your friends. You know what, give me your dad's number. We'll call him right now and I'll prove it to you." Hongjoong demanded, digging around his phone as if he had it with him.

"You're so annoying, stop it!" She complained, kicking at his sides to push him away from her. "You'd tremble at the mere sound of my dad's voice, you don't stand a chance!" 

"You say that a lot," Hongjoong pointed out, swatting her away and sliding away to keep a safe distance. "I don't stand a chance against your best friend, I don't stand a chance against your dad. Who do I even stand a chance against at this point? Those seem like the two most prominent people in your lives right now. Do I even stand a chance with you?"

There was a prolonged silence between the two of them when the last sentence slipped out of the boy's mouth. He didn't even seem to realize what he had said until he finally took notice of Mari's extremely skeptical glances towards him. "Oh, sorry. Autocorrect is an asshole you know? I meant do I even stand a chance against you." He responded with as much confidence as he did the last.

"Hongjoong—"

"Don't say anything I know," He stopped her, getting up off the couch and pointing towards the pool. "I'm just really tired and my parents talking to me at all makes my brain shut down. I'm not thinking straight at all right now. So you don't mind princess, I'm going to throw myself into the pool." 

As soon as the boy turned to walk towards the freeze pool waters, Mari scrambled to her feet in a rush. "Woah, woah! Stop it, it's the middle of the night and that's probably cold as hell you idiot! And dirty too you don't know the last time Mingi filtered his pool!" Hongjoong laughed as Mari tugged on his jacket sleeves, stopping him from walking any further. "You're so stupid! I might as well sucker punch you right in the gut!" Her complaining didn't stop his laughing, letting his childish giggles echo into the night sky.

"Are you even trying to hold me back, princess?" Hongjoong questioned, surprised by the amount of strength she was using. "I thought you were so much stronger than that! I could just pick you up and throw you into the pool myself with even trying!"

"Kim Hongjoong, don't you dare." She hissed, warning him from attempting any of his schemes. Though when he turned around to face her with a mischievous smirk on his face growing ever so widely with each passing second, she knew he had ignored her. He opened his arms out towards her in an attempt grab her right where she stood, though missing her completely when she ducked out of the way. "I'll kill you, don't even try it loverboy! Hongjoong!"

"Oh no princess, do you not know how to swim?" He gasped, putting his hands over his mouth dramatically. "That's so sad, come here I'll teach you how with hands on lessons!" Hongjoong exclaimed, chasing after her life a child on the playground. Mari practically began to run for her life, making a beeline towards the door to try and escape him. "Come on princess! It's a just a little water it can hurt you, let's go for a swim!"


	27. Bottle Rockets

Chaeyeon paced around the lobby, her heels kicking against its marble floors as she tried to calm her nerves. She couldn't sit still, there was no way she was going to be able to when she was left alone in the large room with her own thoughts, waiting for her day of reckoning to come. She had failed her mission given to her specifically by the Godfather of the entire Kim Faction, to bring in the girl who was allied with the Seo Faction. She failed miserably at the job given to her, barely getting her anywhere near the headquarters of the Kim Faction.

The woman had gotten the assistance of their new special members unit from the newly appointed Underboss and made a fool of the group due to her anger fueled decisions. They were picked and trained by Underboss and the mere fact that she had misused the unit for her own gain and didn't even succeed made it even worse. Chaeyeon tried to do as much damage control as possible, keeping the mission and its results a secret from the rest of the faction to uphold their new and fragile reputation. 

Though she wouldn't be able to hide from the cold judging eyes of the Godfather and his men, in fact, she didn't even get the chance. The moment she had returned to their headquarters Chaeyeon had received a message from one of the lower ranked soldiers that her presence was requested by them. That's how she knew she had become a dead woman walking. 

The Godfather and his men were ruthless people, they didn't wait for anyone nor gave anyone any second chances. Once you had failed them, you would never get the chance to rebuild their trust. Either you were stripped of your title or six feet underground, many ended up being the ladder.

But they couldn't just kill off Chaeyeon like she was nothing! She was far too important to the Kim Faction, her family was one of their main sources of income. If they cut off Chaeyeon's connection to them, then a large portion of their money would be lost. It was the perks of a Caporegime, you're far too important to just be gotten rid off with the snap of a finger. "This is all that girl's fault!" She complained, digging her nails into arms at the thought of her. "Had she not aggravated me the way she did I wouldn't be in this situation! Had that idiot not coward out due to some petty child's play, I wouldn't be here right now!"

Chaeyeon needed to do something to release the anger inside of her, letting it fester and bubble up wasn't going to do her any good. If she accidentally exploded on the Godfather she'd lose her life before she even got the chance to beg for it. She wasn't for living life on the edge at the moment, she'd never be for it if it had the high ranking members of the faction on the line.

"Ms. Jung?" A voice spoke, shaking at the mere sound of her name. Chaeyeon turned around with a fire in her eyes, directing it towards the poor soul who called her name. It was nobody, the lowest ranking people in the Kim Faction who worked for the overarching Family who ran the entire underground business. "You are Ms. Jung, correct?"

"Of course I am, who else is here that would be me?" Chaeyeon questioned them, annoyance peaking in her tone as she ran her hands through her hair and walked towards them. "I'm assuming that The Godfather is ready to see me now?" She asked, not even sparing them a glance as she took the lead down the hallway that led to an elevator. 

"Actually the Godfather is not in today," they explained, shuffling after Chaeyeon to try and take the lead to guide her towards the elevator. The woman narrowed her eyes at her escort, giving them a skeptical yet confused look as they continued to speak. "The Godfather left a few days before the Utopia fire with his wife to enjoy their own private time. The Underboss has been working in his stead until he returns in about a day or two from Thailand."

Chaeyeon inwardly groaned at the thought of facing the Underboss. The two didn't get along very well, they never have even before he was appointed the Underboss after the death of their past Underboss two months ago. They handled things rather differently from each other, plus the fact that Chaeyeon had taken his special unit and failed her mission with them meant she was going to be at even more odds with the man than she would like. Every time the Godfather called his Underboss, Consigliere, and Caporegimes, the two would always start bickering and cursing at each other. Usually, the Consigliere was there to supervise them and keep the peace, but it was just going to be her and Underboss this time.

"When this is all over, contact my associates for me," Chaeyeon demanded as the elevator to the top floor opened its doors as they drew closer. "I'm going to need several bottles of alcohol to get over this catfight."

"But Ms. Jung," her escort began, a worried look donning their face as the two entered the elevator. "From what I heard, you had quit drinking months ago to focus more on your tasks for the faction. Why would you want to break that streak now of all times?"

Chaeyeon rolled her eyes at their nagging, leaning up against the metal walls and urging her to punch in the numbers for the top floor. "Your Underboss gets on my nerves." Silence fell over the two as her escort nodded at her towards, not daring to say another word to her and pressing the button to raise them to the top floor. The elevator shook slightly and it began to move upwards, carrying them to the top of the building where the Godfather's office and the Underboss were located.

It stayed quiet as the two waited in the elevator, watching the numbers go from one to ten in only a few minutes. "Tell me has the Underboss seemed rather... odd today? A little more snotty and little angrier maybe?" She asked her escort, trying to give herself the heads up for the incoming conversation she would have to endure.

They seemed conflicted, not knowing whether answering Chaeyeon's question would have them killed or not. "Well... I wouldn't say he was angry. He was calm when he came in this morning as if nothing had happened the day before. I think he's just mentally preparing himself for the return of the Godfather and the amount of recap he'll have to give him so they can go over how they'll act next."

Chaeyeon nodded just as the elevator stopped, a smirk playing on his lips as it's doors slid open. "Is that so?" She replied, walking out without waiting for his escort. 

They quickly rushed after her, trying to catch up with her and lead her down the dark wood hallway. Chaeyeon didn't give them the chance as she reached the room at the end of the hallway, pulling on the door handle and swimming the large double doors open. "You called?" She asked, her tone rough and annoying as she addressed the Underboss.

The Godfather's office wasn't much of an office, it was more like a dimly lit living room with a simple desk and chair sitting behind the sofas and coffee table in the middle of the room. On the desk were a few documents that seemed untouched, pushed to the side to make more space for the endless amounts of alcoholic gifts that were placed on it. Beside the documents was a lamp that's as turned on, illuminating a picture frame that originally would have been right next to it.

Instead of sitting on the desk, it was in the hands of some else. There was a man standing there staring intently at the picture of the Godfather and his family. His gaze was cold and unreadable, shining with some unknown flare that practically reflected against facial piercing on his cheekbone. "You came," He began, putting it down on its face and placing his hands into his dress pants pockets. "I was starting to think that you were going to ignore my orders."

"You would have run to the Godfather to tell him of my misdeeds had I not," She grumbled, walking into the room to face him completely. "Now what do you want? I don't have all day, I'm a very busy person and I'm currently not in the mood."

"Shouldn't I be the one who isn't in the mood?" He asked her, tapping the Godfather's desk rhythmically as he watched her movements carefully. It was as if the Underboss was a hawk, waiting for its prey to let its guard down so that they could strike at just the right moment. "Don't think I don't know what happened. You did a good job of not letting any information about what happened out, but it wasn't good enough to keep it away from me."

"It wasn't my fault she got away!" Chaeyeon growled, her heels screeching against the wood floors as she stalked towards him. "It was your group of bumbling idiots! They can't do anything for themselves, they can't do anything right! I left the task for them to complete and I still had to intervene myself. And I would have had her in my grasps now if your members weren't so childish!"

The Underboss chuckled, watching the woman get easily heated by just a few words that came out of his mouth. "Did you really think I was going to give you the most skilled members just for a simple kidnapping? You're joking, truly."

"It would have helped." She answered, slumping into the sofa that was facing away from the desk. "She's much smarter than she seems Jaebum, though you probably already know that. She was there for the death of the past Underboss, our infiltration of the Seo Faction's masquerade, and now the Utopia fire."

"Exactly why I needed you to find her and bring her here," He explained, his eyes burning holes into the back of her head. "You had your chance and completely blew it. If the men I sent to you weren't helping, you should have done the deed yourself. Yet here you are without the girl and information I need for the Godfather. You are as big of a disappointment as they were."

Chaeyeon bit her tongue to keep her thoughts to herself, not wanting to lash out and say something she regretted. If she let Jaebum get under her skin it was game over for her. "You do understand what usually happens to those who fail to meet their expectations, right? The useless are disposed of, we have no need for those who cannot do their job correctly. By now, you would have been escorted out of the building with a price tag on your head and hunted down by those who seek wealth. Or we would have taken matters into our own hands and ended your life right where you stood. I'm sure the market for a few body parts is still open, you have nice eyes after all."

Chaeyeon's eyes widened and she nearly jumped out of her seat when she felt his hands pat her shoulder, not even realizing that the Underboss had begun to approach her. "I'm giving you one more chance, Jung. Find her and bring her here. I don't care what methods you use as long as she's breathing when she arrives." He demanded, giving her a chance at redemption. It didn't matter what method she used as long as the girl got to Kim Faction while she was still alive.

"Of course," Chaeyeon replied, recalling the two encounters she had with the girl. Her mind was hyper fixated on the people she was accompanied by, how they seemed to have earned her trust and defended her no matter how dangerous the situation seemed. "Whatever it takes."

* * *

Mari watched the three from the curbside of Mingi's, her hand propping up her head as she tried to keep herself awake. Seonghwa had left early in the morning before anyone had woken up, leaving Mingi, Yunho, Hongjoong, and her all alone in the house to do whatever they pleased. Inside of staying inside and waiting for the boy's return, the group had left the house together. What was supposed to be a quick hangout turned into a hijinks ensued adventure as they ran around the city and caused chaos everywhere they went.

It was Mingi who had suggested they went and did something fun, trying to shake off all the energy he has restored due to him being the first person to fall asleep. Since Yunho and Hongjoong couldn't think of anything else to do and Mari was on board with whatever the group decided to do, they ran away into the city. They all had piled into one of the many expensive cars Mingi's parents owned, borrowing the vehicle and nearly shooting off out of the neighborhood at illegally high speeds.

They had visited several places, causing a ruckus with every step they took with how loud they were being. Any adults that were in the area threatened to call the police on them for being public disturbances but it wasn't enough to scare the group into stopping. So one could imagine how they all panicked and ran to Mingi's car when the police did genuinely show up at one point. They had immediately recognized Hongjoong for his several misdemeanors for property damages around the city and Yunho for helping Hongjoong escape whenever he was being hunted down.

They spent the majority of the day running from the police seeing as they were very adamant about putting all four of them behind bars. Mingi and Mari had no actual experience dealing with the authorities, seeing as Mari was forced to stay low due to her status in the Seo Faction and Mingi's parents were filthy rich. The two of them didn't have any sort of criminal record on them like Hongjoong and Yunho, so they had stressed the absolute importance of escape greatly.

Hongjoong and Mari had sat in the back of the boy's car, which ended up being the worst decision they could have ever made in their life. The getaway drive was filled with bumps and sharp twists and turns to get the police off of their backs, practically throwing everyone who wasn't in the driver's seat all around the car. Yunho had almost fallen out of the car several times due to how hard he kept slamming into the car's door. He held onto the grab handle so tightly she swore that the boy's knuckles were going to tear and bleed from the pressure and strength.

Mari and Hongjoong were flung around like tumbleweeds in the back of the car, making the idiotic decision of not buckling up when they had the chance. Every time Mingi would make a sharp turn Hongjoong would crash right into Mari's side or vice versa. When the boy slammed his door on the brakes for a quick stop to alarm their chasers, they would slam right into the driver's and passengers' seats. They begged Mingi to take a little more caution in his driving so that they would survive the ride back to his house, but he was too focused on losing the police to listen to them.

Clearly, though they got back to the boy's house in one piece. They all agreed to not tell Seonghwa what had happened when he returned, not sure if they'd get an excited cackle or an extremely long lecture from him. All they knew was that they didn't want to take any more risks that would potentially get them in trouble.

Though all three of them immediately ignored any sort of risks they were trying to avoid when Yunho brought out a giant two liter soda bottle and Mingi had a pack of mentos in his hands. The two made a mad dash for the street, wanting to shoot off the soda bottle like a rocket in videos that were all over the internet. Thankfully it was afternoon, so no one was going to be driving on the street or watching them with intense judgment as two acted like elementary schoolers working on a science project.

The two sat in the middle of the road, tearing open the mentos pack and struggling to open up the tightly shut two liter bottle. Yunho and Mingi switched jobs after a few seconds of giving up, letting the redhead unscrew the bottle while Yunho tore through the mentos packaging like it was nothing. "They're just a little brainless but they're just trying to have fun," Hongjoong's voice explained, making her look up from where she was sitting. The boy was leaning up against the wall, watching the two boys with an amused smile on his face. 

"If letting a soda bottle explode in their faces is fun then yeah sure," Mari responded, turning her face back towards Mingi and Yunho. Two were screaming their lungs out when the redhead dropped the mint into the soda, nearly forgetting the screw the cap back and rushing to do so before it all spilled out. "Watching them play around like this is like watching a bunch of five year olds at a playground play with each other."

"They get physically older but Mingi is mentally elementary schooler when he's surrounded by people he likes. Yunho only amplifies that time one hundred because they're both close friends with each other," He laughed, taking a seat next to Mari on the curb.

"Oh? No jacket today?" Mari questioned, glancing to the side when she noticed he wasn't wearing his signature leather jacket he always wore. Instead, he was wearing a long sleeve shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and letting his arms breathe for once in his life.

"You know why I don't have that thing on," He scowled, though a soft expression grew on his face not long after. "You watched me get thrown into that pool by Mingi against my will. My jacket got completely soaked, now I have to wait and let it dry because someone didn't stop Mingi from sneaking up on me." 

Mari rolled her eyes at his complaining, ignoring his pouting to look at his freed forearms. His tattoos on his left arm were on full display, the intricate design on his skin visible for all to see. She had never seen a majority of ink on his skin, only bits and pieces when he raised his arms causing the fabric to move. A large majority of it was made up of a skull tattoo, extremely detailed with each crack and indent in the bone as if it was real. Around the skull was a rose that sat below it and a butterfly resting on the forehead. Very pretty, yet very eerie at the same time. Mari wanted to ask why he had gotten it but was a little distracted by his right arm.

"Woah what the hell is that?" She exclaimed, snatching up his right arm and pulling it closer to her to inspect. It was some sort of scar healing from whatever damage it had taken in the past. It looked nasty, pinker than his natural skin tone and tightening together to contort his skin in odd ways. "I thought I told you not to hurt yourself anymore you idiot! This looks really bad, what happened?"

"Ah, that?" He replied, staring at the scar with an apologetic look. "I burned myself by accident a few days ago. It's healing now but I can guarantee you that playing with fire is not as fun as people make it sound."

"Are you dumb? What are you? A pyromaniac?" Mari questioned him, punching him in the shoulder out of sheer frustration. "You're so stupid, I can't believe you would go play with fire of all things! Were you trying to get charged with arson?"

"I wasn't the one who did it!" He pouted, taking his arm away from her and glancing towards the scar once again. "I got caught in the crossfire of a situation I had no part in. Normally I would turn and run to save myself whenever I get the chance but for some reason at that moment, I didn't want to. I tried to be selfless and save someone who had nothing to benefit from me and got hurt. I tried to do a good deed and it didn't work out in my favor so now I'm just never going to do that again."

"At least you did it for a good reason," Mari told him, crossing her arms as she turned her attention towards the two boys on the street. "I would have been angrier with you had you just gotten hurt for no good reason. But you saved a life and that seemed like something you don't usually do right? Don't mop about it, be proud of it. You did a good thing Hongjoong." 

He snorted, almost as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing from her. "You know princess," the boy began, laughing a little to himself before he finished his sentence. "You're slowly becoming one of the reasons I'm starting to think rationally about my life. I didn't really care what my actions would cause at one point but in that situation... I caught myself thinking, would my friends be proud of me for the decision I made? Would you be proud of the decision I made? Not to sound cliche but you're literally not like any other person I've met before."

She stayed silent for a moment, watching as Mingi and Yunho ran and screamed as the soda bottle fizzled inside and shook rapidly. Her eyes watched the bottle intensely as it exploded into the air, flying thanks to its chemical fueled reaction to the mint. "You've just always got me on the mind don't you?" Mari joked. "Can't blame you, I'm kinda perfect."

"I'm being serious," Hongjoong complained, nudging her shoulder at her teasing. "I find myself thinking about you and your opinions a lot more than I should be lately."

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" Mari asked him.

The boy shrugged, rubbing the scar on his arm as he stared off into space. "Honestly? I don't know. It's anything you want it to be. I don't even know why I'm saying all of this at this point."

Mari turned to Hongjoong, forcing him to look at her as she placed her hand on his forehead. "Did you hit your head while you were in that fire as well? Or was it because you slammed into the pool earlier today? You're acting funny, I think you need to go to the doctor. I'll ask Yunho to call Seonghwa and tell him you got a concussion." She demanded, ignoring his clearly annoyed groans as she tried to make up a million excuses at once.

"The only thing the doctor will prescribe," He told her, wrapping his arms around her and forcing her to lay down on the ground with him. Mari practically hissed at him to let her go and he promptly ignored her, "Is for me to take a nap. Shhh... go to sleep with me princess. You're not you when you're sleepy." 

She struggled to get out of his awfully tight grip, her ears burning a bright rid and her eyes continuously darting towards Mingi and Yunho. "Hongjoong, let go of me. Let go right now, I swear to god or I'll scream so loud someone will think a murder happened and call the police. Let go of me!" Mari threatened. 

"Gross!" Mingi yelled from down the street, the empty soda bottle in his hands and a roll of mentos mints in his hand. "Get a room! And not in my house that's absolutely disgusting I don't want any of that non-platonic stuff going on in my house!" Yunho snickered as Mari screamed right back at them, letting a string of cursing escape her mouth as she got defensive with them. "My house is not for people to hook up in when there is no party! You two are gross!"


	28. Swear Not By The Moon

"Mari?" The girl lifted her head up at the sound of her name, squinting her eyes at the bright light that infiltrated her eyes. She rubbed them in a slow motion, trying to regain consciousness of what all that's as going around her. The last thing she remembered was talking to Mingi about something minuscule, though he seemed rather excited about the topic. Had she fallen asleep while he was pouring out his heart about his interest? Now she felt like a bad person. "Mari, can I ask you a question?" 

When she had completely opened her eyes, she immediately noticed something was off. She wasn't in the living room of Mingi's house, sitting on his couch and listening to him rant about whatever they were talking about beforehand. Instead, she was in a very small and rectangular room, reminiscent of a classroom even. It was almost completely empty, a few desks and chairs were scattered about the room with no one to fill them. It was just her, alone and sitting in a desk.

"Mari," The voice called her name again, rather soft and gentle compared to the loud and deep booming voice of Mingi. She turned around in the desk to look behind her, finding Yeosang staring at her with narrowed eyes like a cat. He didn't make a single noise when she saw him, even when she jumped at his sudden appearance he sat still in the seat. His hair was covering his eyes, only allowing his stone-cold eyes to shine through his bangs whenever he moved his head from one side to the other. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," she replied almost immediately, no hesitation stopping her from answering him. Why would she hesitate? Yeosang was Mari's friend and soon to be Consigliere, there was no need to question her actions around him. "Hit me with whatever you want."

The boy leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms as he thought about his next words carefully. There was a light jingling noise coming from his neck, catching Mari's attention in a matter of seconds. Her eyes were immediately glued to a shiny piece of jewelry that hung around his neck, a silver lock and key that were connected to each other by a chain. That was new, she had never seen him wear that before. "What do you think of Wooyoung and Hongjoong?" He asked her, a knowing look on his face. 

"Wooyoung and Hongjoong?" She questioned him, a confused look on her face. He must have heard his name from the fight Mari and Wooyoung had, they were right in front of him when it happened after all. "They're really... really nice friends of mine. Wooyoung is annoying but he's got a good heart, I promise. He just wants what's best for me. Hongjoong talks like he's got hidden demons but he's practically an open book that just hasn't been touched yet. Why do you ask?"

"I only wish that you watch your next steps with them," he told her, gently taking her hands in his as if she was as fragile as a butterfly wing. "You trust both of them with such open arms and a warm heart, it hurts. You don't know what they're hiding, even those closest to you have secrets they can't tell in fear of your reaction. Even I have things I have sworn to never say. And there are some people who depend heavily on your outlook on them, it would be a shame it shatter all at once."

Mari gave him a confused grin, her eyes staring at him as if he was some mythical being coming from the skies. "I don't... I don't understand what you mean?"

"I know," Yeosang spoke, his voice shrill and small as if he was the size of an ant. Goosebumps ran down her spine at the icky feeling of a liquid slowly running down into her hands, cold and warm at the same time in an odd yet fascinating way. The boy lifted his hands off of hers to reveal crimson blood pouring down from his hands to hers, nearly giving her a heart attack at the sight. Mari immediately shoved herself away from the boy, scrambling away from the sight of the blood on her hands. "I just want you to be wary of your future."

"What did you just do? How did you just—" She cut herself off, frantically trying to wipe the blood off her and onto any surface that wasn't her own body. Mari glanced back towards Yeosang, nearly screaming the loudest she possibly could have at the sight. Yeosang sat at the desk with his bloody hands, a polite look on his face despite the two figures looming over his rather petite looking body. 

Wooyoung and Hongjoong stood there behind him with dead expressions in their eyes, as if life had been sucked right out of their bodies. They were like paint splattered statues, yet beaten and bruised with a red liquid oozes from several wounds that were scattered about their bodies. They were like abstract art, yet the only color they were accented with was the crimson red of blood. "If both of them were on death's door, with every horrible secret they kept out, who would you choose to become the savior of? Think carefully, it's only amount of time before you can make your final decision, Mari."

"Princess?" Hongjoong's whispered, trying to be as gentle as possible. Though despite his attempts she jolted up and awake quickly, her eyes wide and her breathing was fast and heavy. Her gaze darted around the room frantically as she tried to make out where she was. All the lights were cut off except for one, which seemed to be the hallway lights of the upstairs floor. It illuminated the downstairs room just a bit, giving her enough dim light to give her confirmation that she was in the living room of Mingi's house. "Are you okay? Did you have a bad dream or something? You were sleeping on the couch, that might be the reason."

"Hongjoong?" Mari asked as if it wasn't already clear who she was talking to. She turned around almost immediately, only to be greeted by the boy leaning up against the couch armrest next to her. He looked at her with curious eyes, though there was a hint of worry in his eyes at the same time. She let out an awkward laugh, trying to clear up any tension she had accidentally caused. "Ah, I must have fallen asleep while Mingi was talking. That's kind of rude of me I'll go apologize."

"It's two in the morning, princess." Hongjoong clarified, pointing towards the window. Madi cautiously glanced around him, taking note of the night sky that was illuminated by the moonlight outdoors. When she was awake it was still sundown. "Almost three am really. Everyone has been asleep for hours, you knocked out before literally everyone. It's going to be hard trying to apologize to a sleeping body."

She nodded at his words, making a mental note in her head to apologize to the boisterous boy when he wakes up in the morning. "So why are you awake then? It is two am like you said, everyone is supposedly asleep and off in their own little dreamland. You must have a habit of staying up late."

"I wish that was the reason I'm up," Hongjoong complained, a hint of annoyance in his tone. "I got another call from my parents. Thankfully it wasn't my father who called this time, but it didn't mean it wasn't a hassle to deal with. My mother is just a watered down version of her husband, slightly more lenient but a bother nonetheless. They had out of town for a while, that's why I had spent my time here instead of at my actual house. Their flight landed a few minutes ago so I was being warned of impending doom."

"This is new," Mari acknowledged, leaning back on the couch with a surprised look on her face. "You've never been one to dive into your family with me."

"That's because I usually complain to Seonghwa about it," Hongjoong snorted, rolling her eyes at the smug expression. "He's heard all of it, probably more times than any normal person really should. Plus, you've been sharing a lot about your family with me. It's only fair I pay it forward with a little bit of an info dump myself."

"I guess you must be leaving? To go back home that is." She asked, earning a confused expression from him. Mari had noticed he wasn't in any sort of traditional sleepwear, dressed up in the now damaged leather jacket from the day before and a simple shirt and jeans. "You look like you're about to leave, so I assumed you were going home. Unless you go to sleep in jeans, then I'd have to cut off the friendship entirely."

He laughed in response, very light-hearted and endearing compared to the way he talked about his parents. "Yes and no. I'm leaving for a short while, but I'm not going home. You remember that guy I told you about at that playground once, my dad's secretary, or whatever you wanna call him. He usually tries to take me back home when my parents return, and since my usual hiding place is Mingi's house he's probably going to head here next. So I'm making a quick getaway for a few hours to throw him off his game."

"You say that like you've got more places to hide in this city," Mari said, though remember exactly who he was talking about. She hadn't seen his father's so-called secretary, only having heard his voice once. It was cold and unforgiving one as if there was no emotion to be found in their time whatsoever. She wondered if they were like that all the time. Mari wouldn't blame Hongjoong for running from him if he did.

Hongjoong smiled, very enthusiastic about the new topic. "Of course I've got more places to hide. If I didn't, I promise you I'd be dead by now. They're scattered all about the city so that I can have a literal variety in where I spend my hours. I even have them all tagged with my own signature so that I can remember where they are when I come about them."

"It seems like you've got this all figured out. Nice planning, I'm not gonna lie. But I'll have to see it to believe you actually used your brain for once." Mari declared, teasing him further.

"You make it sound like I never use my brain," Hongjoong laughed, his light-hearted giggles filling the most silent living room. She was getting a bit more comfortable than she'd like with his constant feathery laughter. "I've got a few gears turning in here when I need them to, I promise. My head especially starts working when I need to avoid my parents, it's like a secondary fight or flight method at this point."

Mari snorted, resting her head in her palms as she spoke to him. "Instead of fight or flight, it's head full or head empty. Honestly, sometimes I think you act on just emotions alone, are you sure you're telling the truth when you say you're thinking sometimes?"

"You have no right to talk, princess!" Hongjoong argued, pouting at the girl teasing. "Who was the one who downed an entire alcoholic drink without even asking what it was? You're lucky I was such a nice person to you even though we barely knew each other, you would have made a complete fool of yourself had I not stepped in." 

The girl groaned, the memory of completely destroying the drink Jaerin gave her still awfully fresh in her head. "God, don't remind me. You got me there, I definitely wasn't using my head in that situation. You can't blame me though, I had never been to a party before. At least, I've never been to one that's not formal. I was just trying to prove a point to Jaerin that her words have no power over me."

"And you almost screwed yourself over in the process." Hongjoong pointed out, a smug smile growing on his face when Mari shot him an annoyed glare. "But hey! Fool you once, shame on you right? Now you've got the common sense to not trust a single word or gift that comes from Jaerin. Congratulations, welcome to the Jaerin is a snake and screws everyone she comes into contact with over club."

"Is there a way out of this club? I don't remember signing up to be on Jaerin's blacklist." Mari joked, though earning a very distressed expression from Hongjoong. "I'll take that as a no then, never mind."

Hongjoong went silent for a moment, thinking deeply about his next words before speaking again. "Do you wanna come with me?" He asked her, gesturing towards the garage door where his motorcycle was located. "I leave off on these mini-adventures a lot, and usually have someone come with me but everyone else is asleep. Sitting and waiting for hours can get lonely so company is greatly appreciated."

"Oh?" Mari replied, a very interested spark in her eyes. "Just us alone? Wow, just say you're asking me out on a date and go, you coward." The girl dramatically covered her face with her hands as she started teasing him again. 

Hongjoong rolled his eyes at her, pushing himself off the arm of the couch with a huff. "I'm not the one who immediately assumed this was going to be a date. But if that's what you want it to be, then sure." He mocked, a little more childish in tone yet mocking her all the same. 

Mari's eyes widened at his words, slowly processing in her head what just happened. Before she knew it he was nonchalantly walking towards the door and her face was beginning to develop a pink hue. "That's...," She began, barely finding the right words to say. "That's not what I meant. Wait a second, Hongjoong, what do you mean. I need you to run that by me one more time because that's not exactly what I meant. It was just a joke I promise. Hongjoong, wait!"

"This is where you hang out when your parents come back to town?" Mari questioned, digging her hands into the extra and thankfully unused denim jacket she was wearing. She had put on whatever she saw first in the closet of the guest room she was using, which caused her to have a very mismatched outfit: a denim jacket, grey sweatpants she had borrowed from Mingi, and the graphic tee she had been wearing to sleep. She definitely looked very appealing next to Hongjoong, who looked like the human embodiment of the ideal 1950's greaser, just modernized. 

It was still rather dark outside, seeing as they were still in the night time hours of five am. The ride to this rather new area was quick thanks to Hongjoong's constant rushing to get out of the house and the natural speed of his motorcycle. She reckoned that if they waited a little longer, they might even be able to catch the sunrise. "This is definitely the place," Hongjoong answered, a proud grin on his face as tapped the wall of the alley. "My tag is here and everything, I just have to figure out how to exactly get where we actually need to be."

"So we're here, but we aren't here at the same time?" Mari asked, approaching him to catch a glimpse of whatever this tag of his what. On the wall where Hongjoong stood was just a small piece of artwork, most likely graffiti due to the spray paint-like texture it had. It was a signature colored with red and yellow spray paint, the handwriting very swift and quick yet somehow rather simple and clean at the same time. It definitely radiated Hongjoong's vibe. 

Hongjoong took a few steps back from where he was standing, trying to put together the pieces in his head. "The last time I came here there was a ladder that I used to get up onto the rooftop. But it doesn't seem to be here anymore. But I bet if we go a little farther down the alley we'll find the fire escape ladder."

"I feel like I'm going to die if I go farther down there," Mari cautioned, her eyes trailing down the alleyway with uncertainty. It was already rather dark outside as is and the sun wasn't going to peak over the horizon to provide them with any natural sunlight any time soon. It only made the alley even darker, giving it a rather eerie and dangerous ambiance. 

"You won't die, princess, don't worry," He reassured her, taking his phone to shine his flashlight. At least one of them had some form of a light source on them. "I've come down this alley a couple of times myself. The biggest injuries I've ever gotten here was a bruise from tripping over a broken glass bottle." Hongjoong began leading her down the alleyway with a lot more confidence than she has expected, but there was a little hesitation in his steps at the same time. It seemed as though those couple of times he walked down the alleyway wasn't as much as he made it out to be.

"Ah yes, I totally and completely trust you with my entire life." Mari rolled her eyes, sarcasm dripping off her tongue as they carefully made their way through the dark alleyway. "I mean, I have no choice but to. You're my only ride to get back to Mingi's house anyways."

"I can't let you die no matter how much you're annoying me right," Hongjoong commented, an aggravated smile on his face as the light from his phone illuminated the fire escape. He suddenly turned around when Mari was right on his heels, forcing him to be uncomfortably close to each other. "It's not very kind nor hospitable for me to just let my date die in an alleyway away from her house, isn't it?"

Mari immediately retaliated by shoving him away from her, using a large portion of her strength to make sure he was either lengths away from her or laying in the garbage pile that was left in the alleyway. "Will you quit it already!? How many times do I have to tell you? That's not what I meant, this is not a date! This is not a date and will not be a date."

Hongjoong laughed as he caught his balance, shining his light on her face to bother her. "I'm not the one who thought that's what I was alluding to though. You think it's a date and I'm just complying with what the princess thinks." He assured her, scrambling up the fire escape when Mari lunged towards him. "It's not very nice to attack the person you're on a date with you know! Now hurry up, I heard that there might be shooting stars tonight and if I miss them I will be throwing you off the side of the building."

"I'm going to rock his shit so hard, I swear I'm going to do it," Mari mumbled as she watched Hongjoong climbed the fire escape to the rooftop. It took all of her willpower not the shake the ladder to scare him, knowing that he would do some equally as frightening to her as payback. Plus that was rather petty for her to do anyways over just some playful teasing, but Mari was one to stoop that low if she really wanted to.

After a few moments of constant teasing and bickering between the two, Mari had finally climbed up on the fire escape with him. She nearly slipped from how fast she was forcing herself to go, but she knew there was no good to staying alone in an alleyway and longer than she already was. The girl lifted herself on top of the rooftop with ease, quickly adjusting her balance so that she could tread more carefully yet easily on the slightly slanted rooftop. 

"Welcome to one of many getaways, princess. But this time it's rooftop addition," Hongjoong introduced, sitting on the roof with his legs crossed like a child. Mari immediately caught notice of the countless amounts of artwork that was drawn on the building, nearly covering up the entire surface with its creativity. Everything about the graffiti screamed Hongjoong aura, his entire mind being poured out into the artwork that no one else had the chance to see. Perhaps this is why Hongjoong doesn't think before he speaks sometimes because his mind is saving up for the hidden graffiti work he hides around the city.

"I almost don't want to sit down," Mari commented, carefully trying not to step on any of the art around her. It was quite literally everywhere, no matter where her eyes turned there was always some sort of splash of color that brought the roof to life. "Walking around all this makes me anxious, I don't want to ruin what you made. Though of all places you just had to pick a rooftop where no one could see?"

"Authorities would try to find me and sue me property damage if I did this somewhere in public." Hongjoong shrugged, urging her to walk towards him like normal. "And you don't have to be cautious. This is just a bunch of art that I've built up over the years layered on top of it. Nothing up here is new except for Yunho's signature that should be up here somewhere. Mingi and Seonghwa have their own signatures up here as well but I forgot where they ended up putting theirs, I just know they have brighter colors than the rest."

"They have their signatures up here?" Mari asked, taking Hongjoong's word and approaching him without hesitation. She took a few quick glances, finding Yunho's signature rather easily since it was colored with a bright ocean blue. "That's nice of you to do. Now you're obligated to let me put my own signature up here as well. Anything those boys are allowed to do I'm allowed to do but better."

Hongjoong laughed, his smile much more genuine and pleased than the smug one from earlier. "I don't think I have any spray paint cans with me right now, but next time I decide to run I'll make sure to get those and take you with me. Though, I don't think you can beat Seonghwa's signature. He writes neatly and fast so everything looks rather elegant and classy. It's funny because it's the exact opposite of what he actually is." 

"You wanna make a bet then?" She asked him, sitting down next to him with a determined look in her eyes. Mari seemed to have caught his interest, an eager expression on his face as she spoke. "If I can make a more elegant and totally godlike signature, you have to do whatever I say for an entire day, but I get to choose whatever day it is. My own servant Hongjoong card that I can only use once."

"And what do I get out of this if you can't?" He asked her, clearly not taking her end of the bet seriously. "I've been thinking of dying my hair to red recently, try out something new since I've done natural colors and blue already. Plus, I think it would be fun to see if I can pull off red better then Mingi, who is basically the red king right now. You'll have to help me with it if you lose, and by helping me with it I mean do everything for me because dying hair is a bit of a long process that I don't feel like doing."

"I've never dyed my hair before though," Mari pointed out, a confused look on her face. "Let alone anyone else's hair. And that's such a weak punishment anyways! Give me something more exciting and challenging than that!"

"Are you sure about that, princess?" Hongjoong questioned, a sly glint in his eyes as he spoke. "I can give you something much more challenging if you're really up for it."

Mari snorted, rolling her eyes at his bluffing. "I'm not a coward you know. You caught me slipping once in the past, but you won't but you won't catch me slipping again. You saw how brave I was those psychos were chasing me. I licked a man's hand to escape getting potentially killed or kidnapped, Hongjoong! I fear nothing at this point, I am basically a god."

"Hush," Hongjoong quieted her, immediately making Mari cease all conversation. She noticed how he was staring up at the sky, his eyes fixed on whatever entity was above them rather than her. "It's a shooting star. Be quiet and make a wish before it goes away."

"Hongjoong that's so child—" Mari tried to argue, though he wasn't paying attention to her anymore. The boy fluttered his eyes closed, keeping them shut tight as he clasped his hands together to make a quick wish before it went away. He almost looked like an innocent child, believing in the well known and constantly told myths of the shooting stars. She rested her head on her knees as she watched him silently, unknowingly smiling at the sight. 

"If you don't mind me asking," Mari began, her voice much softer from her loud boasting tone just a few seconds ago. She couldn't lie, she was genuinely curious at what the boy was so eager to wish for that he had completely ignored her to do so. Hongjoong released himself from his wishing stance, glancing towards her with the same childlike wonder he had for the star. "What did... you end up wishing for?"

Hongjoong thought about it for a second, debating on whether or not he wanted to reveal it to her. Though he smiled at her, lifting his hand up to gently run his hands through her hair. "I wished for you to do my part of the bet and dye my hair red for me." 

"I'm going to beat you up, I'm so sick of you," Mari replied almost immediately, irritation making itself clear in her tone as she reached for his neck. A string of apologizes and laughter fell out of Hongjoong's mouth, grabbing her wrists to hold her back and keep her hands away from him. "I told you I was going to rock your shit and now seems like the perfect time to do so!"


	29. Songbird vs. Rattlesnake

"I'm so glad you could accompany me Jaebum," Chaeyeon grinned, a sickly sweet smile on her fox-like features. "The way you had acted when we last saw each other made it seem like you didn't want to see me again yet here you are." She rested her head in her palm, leaning against the car door window as she waited for some sort of reaction from the Underboss. The two were forced into the same vicinity when they had gotten news of a very particular person who had requested their presence. Chaeyeon had tried to leave the Kim Faction headquarters before the Underboss had heard of the news but she was too slow.

The man didn't reply for a moment, focusing his attention on the hair tie that was wrapped around his wrist. "Seeing as your last objective was an utter failure, I decided to oversee this transaction of information myself. You Caporegimes have a habit of keeping the important details to yourself," Jaebum scowled, tying his hair into a ponytail to keep his awfully long hair out of his face. 

Chaeyeon rolled her eyes at his jab, silently taking deep breaths to keep her cool around the Underboss. She was already on thin ice with not just him but the entire Kim Faction, she'd rather not fall into their cold unforgiving waters. "Aren't you supposed to be preparing for the Godfather's return, he is returning today if I'm not wrong. You should be there with your men to greet him when he lands."

Jaebum paused, thinking carefully about his next words as he dropped his hands from his head. "To my knowledge, he hasn't landed yet. In fact, he's probably not even in the country yet. The Consigliere told me that he will report back to me once the Godfather lands, he'll be greeting him in my place. I'm not still prepared to explain all that has happened since his absence and the Seo Faction problem is still there without any sort of lead on where she could have gone."

Chaeyeon nodded at his words, the gears in her head turning as she began to think. "You came along not to keep watch on me, but to get more information on that girl aren't you?" She guessed, a smirk playing on her lips when the Underboss didn't respond to her. "If you leave this meeting place without information, you won't be able to soften your fall when the Godfather asks what happened. I can't wait to see that all go down at the next rendezvous point."

"There won't be a need to soften my fall," Jaebum spoke as the car began to slow down, signaling that they were reaching their destination. "Not when you will be there to fall with me." He sneered, reminding Chaeyeon that she was also trapped in a corner. All it takes is one word from the Underboss to put her failure to capture the Seo Faction member on blast. Catching that girl is a direct order from the Godfather himself, and he won't be too happy with either of them if he doesn't receive any good news.

Chaeyeon mumbled under her breath, cursing his existing as her driver looked up at them through the rearview mirror. "Ms. Jung," He stuttered out, feeling the amount of tension the two had built up between each other. "We've arrived at the destination you given me. Would you like me to park out of sight like normal?" 

"No, that isn't necessarily this time." She replied, glancing to the side to watch as the Underboss stepped out of the Chrysler without hesitation. Chaeyeon groaned as she watched him walk away from her door, not even bothering to open it for her. She grumbled as she took a hold of the door handle, propping open the door so she could step out, "Who taught him manners? Just because I don't like him doesn't mean he can't open the door for me." 

She shook her head as she stood up to her full height, a little more elevated than normal due to high heels she has chosen to wear for the occasion. "It's a nightclub," Jaebum explained, standing on the street as he stared at the building in front of them. There was an enormously long line filled with people mainly between the ages of twenty and thirty, all waiting impatiently in formal night clothes to enter the club.

Chaeyeon laughed to herself crossing her arms as her eyes quickly skimmed over the appearance of the building. "I know. This place is called The Wonderland, another innocent establishment that's used for illegal means. Though we are safer here then the factions ever were at the Utopia. Not only do people like you and I come here for negotiations, so do the authorities."

"Shouldn't that be a bad thing?" The Underboss questioned, following after Chaeyeon as she nonchalantly walked past the long line of people. "If the authorities are here, they could catch us in the act. We'd be forced to cause a scene in an attempted escape."

Chaeyeon laughed once more at the man's seriousness, an amused glint in her eyes. "The authorities are already corrupt as is if they come here who is to say they aren't as bad or even worse than us? They won't say a word even if their life depended on it." The Underboss didn't say another word after her explanation, he simply turned his eyes towards the bouncer they were approaching.

He looked away from the door he had opened for a pair beforehand, a skeptical look in his eyes as he closed the club doors. "Unfortunately, all those that wish to enter The Wonderland must wait in line like the rest of the people who got here before you." The bouncer explained, giving both Chaeyeon and Jaebum a skeptical and untrusting look.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken," Chaeyeon spoke, reaching under her shirt for the Kim Faction pendant that hung around her neck. She held up the skull necklace for the bouncer to see, her eyes refusing to stop making contact with his. "We have a scheduled event here that we must be arriving at. It should be under Foxtrot, we are here to meet someone who goes by the name of Wyvern."

"So that's you, huh?" The bouncer mumbled, his eyes roaming the skull pendant with an unreadable gaze. With a reluctant sigh, he opened the door for them and stepped out of their way. "Wyvern has not arrived yet, however the room you'll be meeting Wyvern in is on the third floor of this building, you'll know it when you see it. It's heavily guarded, so try not to cause a scene while you're there."

"Don't worry, we won't," The Underboss answered as the two walked past the bouncer and into the noisy and boisterous crowd of people. "However, I can't say the same for our host."

* * *

Mari was this close to losing her mind completely. She had been ignoring the nagging thoughts that were trying to make their way into her mind, screaming at her to pay at least the smallest attention to them. Though the girl had continued to occupy her mind with everything else she could possibly find, stuffing her head with useless knowledge and the feel of pure ecstasy while she was staying at the Song household. It had worked for the most part, she lived in bliss for the majority of them she was out of her house. But then she left the Song household with Hongjoong.

The nagging thoughts had gotten too loud for her to bear once Hongjoong had fallen asleep upon the rooftop with her. It's like they were shaking her by the shoulders, forcing her to stare at the ugly truth she didn't want to face yet. They weren't even as bad as her brain was making them seem, she simply didn't want to come clean with herself.

Yet she knew she was gone for good when the boy had used her shoulder as a pillow, laying his head on her as he knocked out like a light in the early hours of the morning. She had nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt him lay his head on her but had easily gotten used to the feeling of him next to her. It wasn't too far off to say she was rather comfortable with Hongjoong there even, nonchalantly sharing body heat in the chilly morning hours.

Mari knew she was falling, but she didn't like how fast she was going nor that she was falling for him at all. "I refuse," She told herself, pacing aimlessly around the room she was staying in. "What am I? Some stupid hopeless romantic in a movie? I don't have time for this right now, I've got more important things to think about than idiot." 

She had been drilling those words into her for a few minutes, aggressively trying to get a grip of her reality and pull herself out of the clouds. The girl's life was already chaotic as it is, adding a load of aimless pinning was going to distract from all the things she needed to be focusing on. Her faction work was more important than anything else that came her way. "I don't need to be thinking about some teenage romance anyways! I'm Seo Mari, I'm gonna have an entire army of men at the snap of my fingers the moment I'm of age. And I'm too young to be thinking about that useless junk anyway!"

She nearly tripped over her own two feet when she heard knocking on the door, thankfully it was closed so no one could notice her sudden clumsiness. "Uh... yeah?" Mari called, getting off of the ground to her feet as she walked towards the door. She cautiously opened the door, peering through the small crack in the space between the door and the doorframe to see who was on the other side. Her eyes widened at the scarlet red color she was greeted by before swinging the door open. "You actually did it? You dyed it red?"

"Mingi is mad because I stole his thunder," Hongjoong explained, shrugging shoulders as he stepped into the room. He took a strand hair in his hands, playing with the fiery red hair nonchalantly. "It's as if my blue hair wasn't noticeable enough. Now you can spot me from several miles away. I think it looks good though, so I'm satisfied with the result for the most part."

"I thought you said the process was too long and you didn't want to do it?" Mari asked him, leaning against the wall as he fell into the bed without hesitation. "Wasn't that your side of the bet as well, I was supposed to dye your hair for you?"

Hongjoong glanced up at her with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes as he spoke, "Did you think I actually took that bet seriously? I knew you would lose automatically so I took everything as a joke. Are you sad you weren't the one running your hands through my hair?" 

Mari's eyes darted from the boy's face to his fire red hair, not responding for a moment when doing so. "...That's not the problem. The problem is that I took the bet seriously because I wasn't joking. You really had me about to go home and practice my signature so I could have bragging rights to Seonghwa that I can write better than him."

"Princess... you can still do that, you know?" Hongjoong pointed out, an amused and endearing look on his face as he talked to her. "No one is stopping you from going home and practicing your handwriting just so you can put some graffiti on the wall."

"Well, yeah but still!" Mari exclaimed, crossing her arms with a frustrated look on her face. "Now I'm not going to get absolutely anything out of it! No bragging rights, no servant card, not even food or a drink! There's no point in even doing it anymore!"

Hongjoong laughed, his giggles floating through the air like feathers. "If it makes you feel any better, I'll give you a look of admiration and a job well done because you went and practiced till perfection just to do some graffiti on a wall." He explained, earning an annoyed grumble from the girl as she slid down the wall to sit on the ground. "Listen, I really don't care about that stuff. You still haven't told me whether or not you think this color looks good on me or not."

"Why does my opinion matter?" Mari questioned, giving him a skeptical look. "You shouldn't care about the opinions of others on what you do with your appearance, that can have negative influences on you."

"I know," Hongjoong replied his eyes, focused on the one strand of hair that refused to stay out of his face. "But I want to know what you think of it. I always want to know what you think of the stuff I do. I already told you, princess, I care about your view of me a lot. I don't wanna screw it up one day."

"That's kind of a toxic way to put that and I don't want that on my name," Mari teased, earning an annoyed smile from Hongjoong. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. It looks... nice. It looks nice on you."

"Nice?" Hongjoong repeated, getting up from his spot on the bed and walking towards her. "Really? It only looks nice? That's like giving me a four out of ten for effort. Everyone else that's seen Mingi's hair would give him like a ten of out ten! I want a ten out of ten too, I did this entirely by myself! Mingi went to a hairstylist!"

Mari tried her hardest not to laugh at him, covering her mouth to hide the large smile that was growing on her face. "Don't tell me you're jealous? Of his hair no less? How much more childish can you get?" She questioned him, snorting when he started pouting at her response. 

"Don't laugh at me," He demanded with a pout, crouching down in front of her with crossed arms. "You're supposed to be my friend, which means you're on my side. You're supposed to hype me up like Yunho and Seonghwa did when they saw it, not give me a mediocre response! Give me more emotion, don't make fun of me!"

"Okay, okay," She said, unable to wipe the giggly smile on her face. Mari raised up her hands and ran them through his hair, making him freeze at her sudden touch. Mari won't lie, his hair was really soft and she could smell the scent of strawberries on it too. "Your hair looks really good, it's like you were born to have red hair. There? Are you happy now?"

The boy's eyes darted around the room for a second as if he was at a loss for words to say. He wouldn't even dare to look into hers, not even sparing her glance before laughing and covering up his face with his hands. "God, you're going to make me go crazy." He mumbled, a smile peeking from behind his hands.

Mari rested her head on her hands, staring at him with subconscious adoration as his words went in one ear and refused to come out the other. Oh if only he knew how mad she was going too. "Damn right I am," She replied after a moment ruffling up his hair as if he was some elementary student. 

There was a knock on the door, a lot lighter and softer than Hongjoong's knock from earlier. Mari looked up towards the doorknob, reaching to open up the door and opening her mouth to respond to the noise. Though whoever was on the other side opened up the door without waiting for her response, barging into the room without any second thought. Had Mari not moved her arm out of the way in time, she would have gotten hit. "Hey, watch it. You could have hurt me." She hissed, narrowing her eyes at her sudden intruder.

The person who walked in first was an adult male, around the age of her own father if not a little older then that. He was wearing an all black suit as if he had just gotten back from a business trip of some sort and bore a striking similarity to Hongjoong. Fortunately, Mari wasn't dumb enough to not get the connection the moment she saw him. "I believe," the man spoke, his voice strident and deep as if it was an older more mature version of Mingi, "I might be interrupting something?"

Just one word from the man's voice made Mari put her guard him, all instincts telling her to close off any vulnerability immediately. "When did you get here?" Hongjoong questioned, a confused and slightly wary look on his face as he got up off of the ground. Mari followed suit, peering into the hallway to find Mingi biting in his nails nervously and Yunho standing next to him with an anxious smile that tried to play on his lips. Seonghwa had just arrived at the room, frantically looking around for Hongjoong before a devastating expression grew on his face. They didn't seem to have expected his arrival either.

"A couple of hours ago really," He informed him, holding his hands behind his back as the man's eyes looked around the room curiously. The room hadn't changed much since Mari had started to inhabit, but the man seemed intrigued anyways. "I had sent Secretary Cha to find you when I had landed earlier, as I knew you wouldn't be home when I arrived. So you can imagine my surprise when he came back with the news that you were nowhere to be found."

His eyes landed on Mari and she immediately glared back. She knew she couldn't have as someone who radiated with power and authority, but all common sense in her body seemed to have disappeared the moment she noticed Hongjoong tense up at his mere presence. "And it looks like you've made a new friend while I was away. That's wonderful, you've always been more of an introvert after you became friends with these three. Tell me, what's your name?" He asked her, holding his hand out to her.

"Mari," She responded, shoving her hands into her pockets instead of shaking his. The man couldn't help but chuckle at her attitude as she practically sized him up in his head. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Kim. I've heard... many things about you." 

The man laughed, though it wasn't light and warm like Hongjoong's. It was heavy, thick with unearthed power that he hadn't exerted yet. "Feisty with a strong willed personality, I can already tell. You have a knack for finding some of the most peculiar friends Hongjoong." He spoke, addressing the newly dyed redhead. "I am Hongjoong father as you already know. However it is a pleasure meeting you as well, Mari."

"What do you want?" Hongjoong interrupted, growing impatient with his father presence. "You wouldn't have come over here for nothing, so you might as well tell me now while you have me in a place I can't run."

His father smiled at him, but it wasn't like the smiles her own father would give her. "No need to be so harsh, not in front of your friends at least. I just landed back in the city and your mother proposed a wonderful idea for us to all have dinner together. It's been weeks since we saw each other, it'll make for great family bonding, don't you believe so?"

"Hongjoong is hosting Mari here though," Mingi pointed out, trying to slip the boy out of the conversation as best as he could. The group all turned towards the boy, their eyes lingering on him as he fought with his head to form his next words. "It would be bad manners for him to leave while she's still here, right? And she doesn't go home till tomorrow night."

The man's eyes glanced from Mingi to Mari, his gaze unreadable as he sighed quietly to himself. "But of course, where are my own manners?" He replied, turning towards Mari with a slightly annoyed smile on his face. He didn't seem to like the thought of letting Hongjoong run free out of his sight again. "My apologizes, truly. I hope my son has been a very good host to you and that you've enjoyed your stay at the Song household. Please, one day you must come to the Kim household for dinner. I'd love to get you know you better."


	30. Familia

"You do realize... I don't have to go right now?" Mari said, her tone light as if she was too cautious she might somehow hurt Hongjoong. It was the day after yesterday and the two were sitting on the patio sofa of Mingi's backyard, the same place Mari had escaped to in the middle of the night to get her mind off of things. Hongjoong's head was resting on her shoulder, his eyes closed and his arms crossed as he attempted to relax there. The boy seemed stressed, an emotion she never thought would dawn the optimist's face. "I know Mingi had already stalled for you by saying I was going home later today... but if your dad makes you that uncomfortable I can always stay longer."

"You're fine, don't worry," Hongjoong refused, lifting his head up slightly from her shoulder as he thoughtto himself before speaking again. "I mean, you sounded rather stressed about your own problems, that being you had ran from your friend without letting anyone know where you were. I'm sure your own father is probably worried so I shouldn't keep you held up here any longer than I already have."

"Yeah but he can wait," Mari urged, forcing him off of her shoulder completely to turn face to face with him. "I haven't thought of an excuse to give him either... nor how to start a conversation with Wooyoung after our argument. So this would just help me think about what I'm going to say."

Hongjoong snorted, a half hearted smile playing on his lips. "Yeah, like you haven't had an entire four days to think about what you were going to say to them. We've been distracting you from the more serious questions you're trying to figure out since you arrived. Who says we don't just do the same thing again?"

"Because all I need to do is bat my eyes at you a few times and say please and you'll leave me alone," Mari explained, a smirk growing on her face. "You either fall for my charms or become so disgusted by them that you'll leave me alone."

"Touché." Hongjoong shrugged, finding reason in her words. "But I'm being serious, Mari. You haven't be able to contact your family or your friends at all due to the fact that you have no phone. They're probably worried sick, they might think you're actually kidnapped or worse, dead."

Mari rolled her eyes at his warnings, clearly not taking him seriously. "Oh please, if they really believed I was dead, there would be a lot more chaos ensuing right now. My friends can easily convince my father that I'm alive and well, I don't kick the bucket that easily. I'm like a diamond, you can only scratch me with another diamond." 

"Still," Hongjoong insisted, taking out his phone and holding it out to her. "At least call them and tell them you're coming home and that you're okay. As much as I like teasing your friend when he isn't here to defend himself, I know he's got to be awfully worried about you."

Mari stared at the phone handed to her, reluctant to take it out of his grasp. "You said Wooyoung is your close friend, your childhood friend even? There's no way he's not reeling at the thought that you might have gone missing somehow without having apologized for your fight. Your father may be fine with whatever they convinced him with, but your friend definitely isn't going to be."

The girl unwillingly took his phone, biting her lip as she stared at the black screen that soon illuminated her face with its bright light. If only she knew San's phone number by heart, maybe she could possibly get away with avoiding Wooyoung for just a little bit longer. "You know I'm only doing this because you told me to, not because I actually want to." She spoke, giving him a hard stare when she looked up from his phone screen. 

"If your friend is as strong as you say he is," Hongjoong taunted, resting his head in his hands as he watched her. "I would rather not piss him once he finds out I've been keeping you hauled up at my friends house for longer than I need to be."

"I thought you weren't afraid of him?" Mari asked, raising a brow at the boy's words as she unlocked his phone to reach his contacts. "Suddenly change your mind about there being "more than what meets the eye" huh? That was rather fast... it only took a few days for you to go back on your word."

"I didn't go back on my word," Hongjoong hissed, "I just don't want your friend to try and fight me when I take you home. I'd like to return back to my own room without scratches from a jealous boy's cat fight with me."

"Touché Hongjoong..." Mari mumbled, a small smile playing on her lips as she dialed her friends phone number. "I wouldn't say that I'd like to see a fight like that between the two of you because I think it would be funny... but then I'd just be straight up lying to you. And you wouldn't like me lying would you?"

* * *

"I thought you'd never return, Mari," Yeosang greeted, a knowing smile on his face as he stood in front of the Seo Manor doors. The girl closed the door to the Rolls-Royce between her, rolling her eyes at the boy's words as she approached him. Hongjoong had dropped her off unwillingly at the playground they had first found each other in and had practically begged her to let him take her the rest of the way home. He clearly didn't trust her being alone at the moment, seeing as the last him she was going unsupervised she was almost kidnapped and killed.

The girl had to reassure him that now she was on familiar grounds, meaning that no one would try to hurt her now that she was in her own territory. The Seo Faction had the area around the manor on complete lockdown, if anyone tried to harm her there then they'd meet the business end of a semi automatic pistol. Of course she didn't tell Hongjoong all of that information, it seemed like enough information to make her seem skeptical in his eyes. 

Plus, Mari had remembered Yeosang's phone number in a clutch moment when she was still at Mingi's house. She ended up calling the consigliere's son and asking him to send her a ride back to the manor so that she wasn't alone for good. The girl didn't want to walk all that way back to her home and she would be lying if she said she wasn't slightly paranoid of another attack when she was alone.

"Five days of being away from the faction... that's a new record, completely smashing the old record of one singular night," He teased, trailing behind Mari as she opened the doors of the manor. There weren't many people inside of the building, just a few men scattered about the area in their own little factions of people and carrying out their daily lives. She must have arrived on a slow. When Yeosang realized she wasn't going to respond, he cleared his throat to continue on with the more important business.

"Wooyoung covered for you while you were gone. I don't know what the reason he made was, but whatever he said was good enough for you father to take and leave you be." He informed her, holding his hands behind his back as he caught up and stood next to her. "I haven't told your father what you said on our call due to Wooyoung's fib being in place at the moment, so I haven't done any background checks on the women you asked about."

Mari nodded his words, taking in the somewhat serious atmosphere so she could focus on her task at hand. "Her name was Jung something... Jung Chaeyeon I believe. She claimed to be a Caporegime for the Kim Faction and threatened me with her position of power. I think she works directly under the rival faction's head leader, seeing as she said she was taking some sort of orders from him to seek me out and had that same group from the Utopia under her wing."

"What'd I tell you?" Yeosang questioned, giving her a side glare as he began to think to himself. "You have a target on your head, an even bigger one than I had expected. Leaving the manor the way you did almost got you killed, though I won't lie it did give us some more information to go on to uncover some of the mysteries about the unit the Kim Faction has put together."

Mari turned to Yeosang with an intrigued glint in her eyes. She had assumed by now that the Seo Faction would have found and revealed tons of mysteries surrounding the Kim Faction's unit. The Consigliere's son pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance, as if all his past stress began to pile up on him. "We haven't gotten any new information on the group despite the numerous and thorough searches we've conducted. The Kim Faction has hidden their information on this unit very well, it might not be documented in any way in order to keep us away from them."

"So you don't even know how many of them there are?" She asked him, and the boy shrugged his shoulders in defeat. He seems utterly clueless on the subject. "For all we know there could be an entire army of them preparing themselves behind the Kim Faction... and the mere fact that I seem to be their current target is even more worrisome than I'd like it to be." 

"For now," Yeosang continued,"I've placed that on the back burner, though hopefully the information you gave me will help my investigation with the intelligence team. Our current plan of action is infiltrating a place called The Wonderland, as some of our associates reported that they've spotted Kim Faction members slugging around that area but aren't clear on what their intention of being there was."

Mari groaned, letting out a deep sigh at the mention of a skeptical building. "Another infiltrate and disrupt objective? With the way the Utopia ended, you'd think my father would take a moment of rest instead of jumping right back into it again."

"Oh don't worry," Yeosang reassured her, flashing her an oddly warm yet teasing smile. "The Wonderland is a nightclub, no one under the age of twenty one is allowed in. So that means no minors are allowed to attend that mission."

"Mari!" A voice called, catching her attention almost immediately. At the top of the stairs stood a familiar young smile, waving his hands towards her in a friendly manner. "It's been a moment since I've seen you, hasn't it? Where'd you go? Every time I came over here with the Lee Faction, you weren't here."

"Jongho," Mari called back, pleased look on her face at the sight of the former fighter. He seemed to be in healthy condition after his round in the Utopia cages, his wounds healed significantly and his attitude taking a complete one eighty at the sight of her. "It's good to see you're doing well. What are you doing here at the Seo Manor?" She asked him as he hurried down the stairs to meet her. 

"The Lee Faction stopped by for a visit again." Jongho answered,"When you were gone, the Lee and Seo Faction officially made a deal and became true allies with each other. It's a shame you missed it, it's the very first time the Lee Faction has ever chosen a side when it comes to the Seo and Kim Faction rivalries."

"He's right,"Yeosang backed him up, taking Jongho off guard for a moment. The last time the two had interacted with each other was when Jongho was being held against his will by Seo Faction. It makes sense as to why he's still just slightly hesitant around the Consigliere's son. "The Lee Faction is notorious for making extremely short time partnerships with others before ending them completely. They don't usually stick with one faction in order to keep themselves out of the rivalries that could ensue. But the Lee Faction made a long term agreement to become our allies. So not only is the Japanese Yakuza on our side, but so is the Lee Faction."

"Slowly, we're outnumbering the Kim Faction in terms of men," Mari nodded, acknowledging this potential lead on the opposite faction. "What about the Chinese Triad? Are they on the Kims side or are they still considered neutral when it comes to our affairs."

"No one knows," San's voice echoed through the all, making them all turn their heads towards the staircase to the upper floor. The boy stood there with his hands shoved deep within his pockets and a bright smile on his face at the sight of Mari. His facial expression was drastically different from the seriousness of the topic he chose to join in on. "No one in the faction can get into contact with the Chinese Triad. It's almost as if they're isolating themselves, even from the Japanese Yakuza."

Standing to the very bright friend of hers was Wooyoung, a rather conflicted expression on his face as his eyes landed on her. Mari returned the stare, not one to be flustered so easily despite knowing she exactly had any ideas on how she was going to approach him. She had made up so many scenarios in her mind about how this confrontation between the two of them could play out, she just didn't know which would leave them both in one piece. 

San seemed to have picked up on the slowly rising tension between the two of them, his eyes darting between his two friends in slight worry. He nudged Wooyoung forward, as if trying to force him to take the initiative in the situation while he still could. Though the boy didn't budge from the position he was standing in, keeping god awfully strong eye contact and a stoic expression as he looked down on her.

"Wooyoung—" Mari called, taking one step towards him before the boy immediately turned in his heel and began walking in the opposite direction. The girl's hands squeezed info with a tight fist and groaned in frustration as she instinctively started chasing after him, abandoning the conversation she had started with Jongho and Yeosang. "Wooyoung, can we talk for just one second, please? I know you want to avoid this as much as I do, but I don't think that's going to help us right now."

Once she had climbed to the top of the stairs, San stopped her from going any further, grabbing her arm and making her face him. "Are you sure you want to do this right now," He asked her, a knowing expression on his face signaling that he was up to date on the current events. "Things have happened since you've been away, it'll just cause more unnecessary stress for everyone."

"If I don't do it now, it won't be done at all," Mari insisted. "I've had five days to think about how I want this to go down, and at this point I just want to work this whole ordeal out with him. I can't live with myself knowing that I said things that shouldn't have ever come out of mouth. I can't live with the fact that I've hurt my best friend, San, not anymore at least."

San seemed conflicted, his brain running through all the possibilities and outcomes of Mari confronting him the way she was trying to approach him. Though thanks to his other half of his brain cell storming off at the sight of Mari, he had to think a little harder than normal. "Well don't hurt him anymore then he already has been. It's been a rough few days for him and without your shoulder to cry on, I've become his tissue box."

Mari raised a brow in slight interest and worry, tensing slightly as she turned to face him. "What happened... while I was away....?"

"Two days ago, some of our men had reported back from a quick mission. The details of their mission isn't that important to the story, but it's what they found while returning back from their objective." Yeosang interjected, breaking into the conversation he couldn't help but hear. "They had found the body of a man, seemingly killed ruthlessly with at least one bullet to the heart and two into his chest, even scars of what seemed to be a power struggle. It was on the very edge of Kim Faction territory, so they were going to ignore it at first."

"Someone in the unit had identified the man's body," San spoke, his eyes unable to reach Mari's confused ones. "Due to their striking resemblance to Wooyoung. It was his father, Mari, even Wooyoung himself confirmed it. The Kim Faction had gotten ahold of his father and they murdered him."

"You're joking?" Mari questioned, her eyes widening as her brain processes the information she was receiving. She felt like she should be happy at the news she had received. Her childhood friend's deadbeat father who had already caused a good amount of trauma for Wooyoung had finally been rid of the world. If she was being honest, she was practically praying for him to be taken out some way or another in revenge for hurting her friend at such a young age. Thought preferably it would be under her foot instead of someone else's. 

Yet even so, this was still Wooyoung's last family living member. And his life had been stolen by the same people who had taken his mother's life away as well. 

Before San could even retaliate and finish his words, the girl had begun sprinting down the hallway Wooyoung had taken. "Mari, hold on!" The boy yelled, trying to run after her but ultimately giving up in the end. It's not that Mari was too fast for him to catch, but this was a very personal matter to both of them. Her childhood friend had lost the last remaining connection to his mother, and Mari wasn't even there to comfort him. Just a few days before that he had gotten into an argument with no apologies yet either. It was just terrible timing really.

Thankfully the boy hadn't gone far, so Mari was able to catch up with him rather quickly. Once she had caught up to him, she wrapped her arms around him without warning, nearly giving him a heart attack with the sudden back hug. "What are you doing?" He questioned, only making her hold him tighter in retaliation.

"I'm sorry," She mumbled, digging her nails into her arms as she held him tighter. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. If I hadn't gotten so heated in that argument, I wouldn't have said all those things and left. As much as I hate him for leaving you the way he did, maybe we could have stopped the Kim Faction before they slaughter your father. I know losing your mother was an extremely hard time for you and he was the last bit of your childhood you had left."

"Mari..." Wooyoung began, forcing her to let go of him so he could turn around and face her. Though she immediately wrapped her arms around him again, holding him as tightly as she'd fly away at any given moment. "It's okay, I'm okay."

"Don't tell me you're okay! I didn't even try and check up on you while I was away, I was too prideful to even try and see if something was wrong," She admitted, her voice slightly muffled thanks to her nearly burying her entire head in his neck. "I wasn't there when you needed me to be, and I'm never going to live that down. But it's alright, because I'm here now."

His arms wrapped around Mari as he started speaking, though his voice shaking with every syllable that escaped his mouth. "It's okay," Wooyoung choked out, digging his nails into his own skin as he finally accepted the sudden embrace Mari had willingly given him. "I don't even know why I care so much when he never did in the first place. It's just... ironic." He was trembling in her grasp, a sniffle here and there followed along by the quiet splatter of tears that fell from his eyes. "It's all just really ironic to me."

"You deserve so much more than what's given to you," Mari whispered, her heart aching at the sniveling and whimpering thundering in her ears. "I'm sorry, Wooyoung."


	31. Viper Queen

"What do you want?" Mari hissed, closing her room door behind her cautiously as she stepped out. Yeosang had arrived at her room earlier in the day to bring her news that her presence was needed by her father. She hadn't immediately made a mad dash for her father's office as she had just returned back to the Seo Manor and spent a few hours with Wooyoung in comfortable yet complete silence, so with that being said she was rather late to her meeting with him. Mari had intended to approach her father when her energy had been rejuvenated from the former events, as she knew she'd need a lot of brain power for whatever he was asking to speak to her about.

Yet unfortunately it seemed as though she was going to spend her energy on something different and more difficult to penetrate. "I just came by to greet you," The sickly sweet voice of Jaerin told her, smiling at her so widely that she could see every lie she was going to spite from her mouth. "I mean... you disappeared for almost a whole week! Your father and my father had held a dinner with our respective Consiglieres and Underbosses in honor of the Lee-Seo alliance. What did my father call it? The Amphithere Alliance I believe."

"Yeah? Well I wouldn't want to have dinner with you anyways," Mari replied, her eyes mimicking Yeosang's annoyed stone cold gaze as she pushed past the Lee Faction heir. She could only imagine how awkward and tense that dinner would have been if Mari was present. The two daughters of their respective mafia's staring at each other with murderous intent for their past encounters that neither of their families knew of. "Just looking at you would make me lose my appetite."

Jaerin hummed in response, her smile twitching in annoyance to Mari's jab. Though she continued after her, following behind her steps as she began to pester her. "I can only help but wonder, where did you go? I knew snakes were very good at camouflaging with their surroundings, but you quite literally disappeared into thin air." She told her, referencing the Seo Faction's so-to-say mascot, a venomous snake, in her analogy. 

Mari stopped in her tracks forcing a smile to play on her lips as she faced the girl. "Where I went, Jaerin, is none of your business. Now if you excuse me, I have somewhere to be right now." She growled, scanning the girl's appearance and silently judging her in her head. The girl truly did dress like fake royalty, using the moment her faction earned and spending it on expensive clothing brands. How typical for a spoiled princess such as herself.

After a few seconds of pure silence, Mari started making her way down the hallway. She slowly began to inhale and exhale, not letting a petty temper overwhelming her thoughts and actions. One wrong step and Mari might bite Jaerin's head off for aggravating her so much. "Am I not even allowed to guess?" Her voice piped up after a few seconds, talking about that sounded a little more taunting than need be.

"No," Mari answered, trying to keep the conversation as short as possible. "You don't get to guess where I've been. That's my business and mine alone."

"Oh don't be so crude, Mari," Jaerin scoffed, fastening her pace and putting her hand on her shoulder to emulate the feeling of fake comfort. "I don't really need to guess to know that you've been sneaking around with the boy from our school." She told her, making Mari freeze in place almost immediately. "Yunho, Seonghwa, Mingi, and especially Hongjoong, that entire posse of boys. I didn't strike you to be for multiple men at once but you just continue to surprise me."

Mari's eyes widened at the mention of their names, shrugging the girl's hand aggressively and turning to face her. "What did you just say?"

Jaerin laughed, nearly turning red from the Seo Faction girl's reaction. "If only you could see the look on your face! I'm only joking, why would any of them even like you of all people? I mean you are...," The girl stepped back to get a good look of Mari, an extremely judgmental glint in her eyes as she glanced at her from head to toe. "Well, you are you after all. I mean look at you! Do you really think they're impressed? They have such high standards! I don't even understand how Hongjoong could look at you for more than two seconds."

Mari felt several emotions bubble instead of her, banging on her chest like a beast trapped inside of a cage. If only there weren't people walking through the hallway every few minutes, she would have clawed the girl's eyes out by now. "What do you want, Jaerin? Clearly you're not here just to see me after my absence from the manor." She replied, crossing her arms and beginning to get slightly defensive in the girl's presence.

Jaerin gasped, clasping her hands together as a mocking laugh escaped her mouth once more. "Don't tell me? You really think he likes you, you must be out of your goddamn mind!"

She placed her hands on Mari's shoulders firmly, refusing to budge no matter how many times she shrugged to snatched her hands off of her. "I feel so sorry for you, being stringed along like a moth to a flame. You're only gonna get your feelings hurt in the end I can already see it! You aren't like me, you know nothing about him. Naively following behind him like a puppy is going to get you hurt."

"Why should I listen to the girl who spiked my drink because she was too jealous of someone getting more attention than her?" Mari questioned her, shoved her away from her with a little more strength than she intended. The girl yelped when she tumbled to the ground, hitting the floor with a heavy thud that was a slightly louder than either of them had expected. "Why should I listen to the girl who had Jongho so frightened of his own faction that he thought he was going to die by the hands of the Lees? Everything that comes out of your mouth is just some silvery lie that I refuse to fall victim to."

Jaerin's eyes widened for a moment, the shock from Mari's words slowly morphing into an angry glare. The girl's petty threats weren't working on her like she had planned, especially when Mari was right at home on her faction's territory. "I see how it is... I see very clearly," She responded, lifting herself off of the floor and dusting off any dirt that collected on her clothes. "Keep on walking down the path you're on then, please continue I won't stop you anymore then I already have. Get your little heartbroken by a boy you barely even know! You're nothing more than a pawn in his chess game, too easy to snag up and use for his own purposes."

Mari laughed, forcing a tight smile on her face as her jaw clenched even tighter with every passing second. "I've been trying to keep my composure this entire time yet you continue to pester and annoy me to no end," the girl swore, cracking her knuckles as she began to walk towards the Lee Faction heir. "And frankly I'm beginning to run out of patience with your attitude in my territory of all places."

"Our," Jaerin hissed, putting as much emphasis on the word as she should muster. "I believe you mean our territory, according to the Seo-Lee alliance."

The girl gasped in response, faking her interest in the other girl's words as she continued to walk towards her. "Oh I'm sorry, you're right. This is our territory now. But when I'm done with you you're not going to want to return back here and claim it to be yours anymore." She threatened, lunging towards the girl like a angry beast. Mari couldn't help but attack her no matter how much she tried to ignore the urge to hurt her. Jaerin was wildly good at getting under skin, so the Lee Faction heir better be happy she didn't have any sort of weapon on her.

"Get off of me!" Jaerin screeched, the fear of Mari actually hurting her evident in her voice. "What are you?! Some kind of rabid dog? Get off me, get away from me you fucking heathen!"

Mari had to keep herself from attempting to seriously injuring the girl, meaning she had to ignore the urge to choke Jaerin out whole she had the chance. Instead she simply grabbed a handful of the girl's silky long hair, tugging on the strands as hard as she could like it was a chain. The girl screamed in agony, squirming around under Mari's body and trying to force her to let go of her. Jaerin's yells echoed through the hallway, catching the attention of anyone in the area who could hear her. Footsteps rushed into the hallway as fast as they could at the girl's pleas for help, gasping of the one-sided catfight the two of them were in.

"Mari, what in the good hell are you doing?!" Wooyoung's voice hissed, following by a pair of footsteps that went racing to her side. In a flash San had appeared in between them, forcing the girl's hands away from Jaerin's hair and separating them from each other. 

Jaerin squirmed backwards, getting as far behind San as she could be a safe distance away from the Seo Faction heir. "Is she insane? Put that girl on a leash for god sake! Train her even! She's like a deranged animal!"

San's head snapped towards Jaerin with an offended look in his eyes, as if he was going to take the chance and jump Jaerin for letting such words fall out of her mouth. Mari immediately lunged towards the Lee Faction heir again, her nostrils flaring like bull's and her face turning into an angry shade of red in pure frustration. Wooyoung was able to stop both of them though, having one arm slung around Mari's waist to restrain her from moving forward and the other hand holding San's wrist tightly to keep him in place. Wooyoung looked like some sort of beast tamer as he tried to keep the two of them from slaughtering the girl.

"What is going on here?" A voice boomed down the hallway, the small crowd that formed around the teenagers beginning to split like the Red Sea. The three turned their heads instinctively in almost exact unison, their eyes widening at the sight of Mari's father walking towards them. 

Wooyoung's grip on the two slowly faltering at the sight of the man himself approaching them with a fuming and disappointed expression donning his face. When his hands dropped him San, he immediately lowered his head in respect, not even daring to lift his head up and meet the man's gaze. Unlike Mari and Wooyoung, her father wasn't a father figure to him. He was San's superior and always put the treatment of his superior over his own. Wooyoung copied San almost immediately, having been in trouble with the superiors of the faction for covering up for Mari big time.

Mari, however, stood her ground just as she had always done. She was breathing fast and hard thanks to the sudden adrenaline rush from attacking Jaerin and was flexing her fists that sat by her side, yet she kept eye contact with her father. Both gazes holding the same fiery aggravation for each other's actions, though her father's had a hint of disappointment compared to Mari's intense glare. "What is the meaning of this?" He questioned her, his tone silvery and cynical.

The girl didn't respond, the only noise coming from her was the heavy inhale and exhales like she was an exhausted animal. She looked rather animalistic at the moment to begin with, baring her teeth at Jaerin like a predator would do to its prey to intimidate it. "Well, do you have an explanation for yourself or would you like to embarrass yourself in front of every colleague that can hear us right?" His father asked her, gesturing to the many soldiers of the Seo Faction that had rushed to see the action.

Jaerin smirked as she finally lifted herself off of the ground, holding her hands behind her back as she slid behind Mari's father for the utmost protection. She gave the girl a knowing smirk, her head held high as she watched Mari and her father carefully. The girl took a threatening step towards the Lee Faction heir, causing the girl in question to flinch away in order to keep her distance between the two of them. Wooyoung held on Mari's hand in retaliation, squeezing it tightly to calm her nerves and hopefully give her the reassurance she needs to face her father professionally in front of such a big crowd.

"I don't need to explain myself when it comes to her," Mari told him, nearly spitting at Jaerin as she spoke. "She's all bark and no bite. It was only a matter of time before someone finally brought that 'untouchable ego' of hers down to earth." 

"Mari," Wooyoung hissed, shaking her slightly to bring her back into reality so that she could realize her situation and who she was talking to. She didn't seem to notice him desperately trying to fix her attitude, directing her annoyed glare towards both her father and Jaerin.

Her father scoffed, crossing his arms at his daughter's attitude. "You've become too comfortable with the life that has been provided to you." He told her, earning confused expressions from both Wooyoung and San. "I don't tolerate disrespect from anyone in his faction, even from you." 

Mari's fiery glare never died out despite her father's words, in fact one could say he only added fuel to flame even. Without a moment's notice, the mob boss grabbed the girl's wrist and began dragging her down the hallway against her will. She dug her heels into the ground, trying to resist his pull and stand right where she was. "Let go of me!" She demanded, trying to snatch her hand away despite his tight grip on her. "Let go of me, let go!" 

"Mari—" San began, taking a step forward to try and intervene between the two. Though Wooyoung blocked the way with his hand, mentally deciding it was best they don't try to intrude on the two. So they stood right where Mari and her father had left them, forcing them to watch as the girl desperately threw a childish tantrum in front of an entire crowd to see

* * *

The mahogany door closed shut behind the two as the father and daughter entered the office, Mari still kicking and screaming like a child for her to be let go of. Her father's grip on her wrist finally loosened and she quickly snatched her hands away from him, a look of betrayal growing on her face as she slumped to the ground. "Are you out of your mind, Mari?" He asked her, towering over her figure as he tried to conceal the amount of irritation that was bubbling up in his mind. She didn't respond to his words, her hands balling up into a fist with each word that escaped his mouth.

"Why of all the people in this manor right you, you attack Lee Jaerin?" The man criticized her, his voice rising over his usual calm inside voice and into a bitter booming tone. "Has Yeosang not caught you up to speed yet? We have an alliance with the Lee Faction now, this is a once in a lifetime chance we have right now. I cannot afford you to sever this relationship because you attacked the only daughter of the Lees!"

"Is that all you care about?" Mari bite back, quickly rising to her feet in a surge of anger. "Some alliance to a faction we don't even need on our side right now? You were going to take that witch's side whether you heard out what I was going to say or not! You're going to choose some wealthy petty little girl over me, your actual daughter, in a scenario where I actually wasn't wrong this time? That girl has been instigating fights me since we first met, before she even knew who I really was. You really expect me to just sit and be obedient?"

"Yes, actually, I do!" He argued back, his aggressive tone taking Mari off guard for a moment. Her face twisted into a look of hurt, baffled by her father's quick answer. "This is one of the most important alliances in the history of the Seo and Kim Faction. We have even higher chances of officially crushing our rival faction, ending them once and for all after all of the pain and suffering they've caused for us not only in the past but in the present as well. I need to be prepared for a potential war and getting on Lee Faction's good side is an important step into reaching the goal. Total annihilation of our enemies and control of the underground works of the country."

Mari scoffed, her heart aching for her father's lack of sympathy. "You're joking, why are you so hyper focused on this one singular goal that hasn't been achieved for literal years. The Seo faction literally dates back how many years and no one has been hungry for power that they neglect their own children's feelings and worries. You really think mom would sit here and let you do this to yourself?"

"She's not here anymore!" Her father yelled, driving a knife straight into Mari's heart. "The Kim Faction murdered her in cold blood just to keep us from advancing higher than them. And don't think I don't know of your little research plans with the Consigliere's son, I know you're being targeted now too. They're trying to kill us off Mari, and I won't let them take the last member of my family away from me anymore. I'm doing this to avenge my wife, your mother. I'm doing this to protect you."

The girl took a deep breath, attempting to resist the hot tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. "Are you doing this to protect me, or are you doing this because you want power and territory that the Kim Faction holds? You don't care, you stopped caring the moment my mom died."

Her father opened his mouth to retaliate, trying to turn the subject around and explain himself but Mari was one step ahead of him. "I mean, what's next? Next thing you know you're going to take Wooyoung and San away from me in place of some blood thirsty men who are too trigger happy for their own good? Are you going to force him to stay in the manor for the rest of my life because you don't want the next step in your legacy to walk out of the house and never turn back? At this point it's making me worry if you would even mourn me because I'm your daughter and not the next chapter in your story if I died!"

Mari wanted to turn heel and run out the door again just like she had done to Wooyoung. She wanted to run back to Mingi's house, she wanted to run back to Hongjoong. She felt suffocated being in the same vicinity as her father knowing his goals and ideals had done a complete one eighty. "Let me out of here," She demanded, turning away from her father and staring towards the closed mahogany doors. "Get me out of here, right now."

She heard her father take a deep breathe, a moment of uncomfortable silence encasing the room. Oh how she longed to be out of the office, somewhere far away from her father's unnecessary wrath. Whether it was with Wooyoung in her room or with Hongjoong at one of his hideouts, it didn't matter which one. Both of them could easily get her mind off of the current turmoil of her unfortunately tiny family.

"Mari," Her father spoke, his tone of voice much softer than it was earlier. It seemed as though those deep breathes he took a few moments ago had truly calmed him down. "I'm sorry, that it feels like I don't care anymore, but there's only so much I can do to make your life normal. Your mother had taken the job of trying to let you live as normal as possible, but she's gone now. I can't even focus on normal anymore, not when every day we are on the verge of a all out war with the Kims. There's just no way."

He placed his hands on her shoulders before bringing her into an unwanted hug, the fatherly warmth she thought had disappeared a long time ago wrapping around her body. "Everything I do, every step I take and every word I speak, it's all to make sure that you can live well once I finally pass the torch to you. You're the heir of the Seo Faction, Mari... nothing will ever be the same as long as you hold this position."

Mari bit her lip, nearly puncturing it and drawing blood. She was frustrated, she was irritated, she was distraught. The girl never wanted the position of heir, but fate loved the play with her emotions and forced her into it anyways. She could only wonder what other unfortunate situations she'd have to face due to this curse of being the Seo Faction's one and only soon to be Godfather (or mother in her case). 

"I want you to take this," Her father told her, letting go of her and walking towards his desk. There he picked up a small black ring box, tied with a white ribbon it to make sure its insides stayed there. "It was gifted to your mother by mine when we had gotten married, and she had always talked about passing it down to you one day, she just never found the right time to do so. I know this doesn't make up for what I've said and done today, but I hope it provides at least a little comfort for the loss of your mother and a small apology for my actions today."


	32. Track Star

The moment Mari had stepped foot onto her school's campus, she immediately went into hiding mode. It wasn't even that long ago since her incident of attacking Jaerin, in fact, it was just the night before even. The tension was still high between the two girls and the mere sight of the other might cause a catfight to break out. While she was always down to drag the Lee Faction heir back to Earth by her hair, in public it wasn't the best place to proceed with such an act.

So she had been hiding away from plain sight all day, going solo for as long as she could last. Keeping her head down in hallways, dashing into random classrooms, wearing her school's entire uniform to disguise herself, she even went so far as to avoid San during the day in order to keep herself hidden. Mari believed the girl didn't have much intelligence in that small brain of hers, but she wasn't going to immediately assume she was stupid either. There was a slight routine to Mari's everyday life and she would willingly disrupt it if it meant not having to face her consequences.

Mari had done well so far with going the entire day avoiding Jaerin and not having to hear a single word come from her mouth. Though the keyword is so far.

"Shit," She hissed, pressing her back against the wall of the classroom. Mari was trying her best to escape the school's premise so that she could go home and collapse in peace, Jaerin had finally started the witch hunt. In the classroom, she was standing next to was Jaerin and a teacher, a very frustrated and annoyed looking teacher. Mari had immediately recognized them as one of the adults who were forced to watch her during her detention hours. None of those teachers really liked her, which meant she was in definite trouble.

"Are you serious? Seo Mari was the one who did this to you?" They asked Jaerin, their time thinning with anger. "I know she's not the best of students but I never assumed she would go this far."

There was a moment of silence in the room, which Mari could only assume with Jaerin giving the teacher a pitiful nod. "She's never liked me, no matter what I did to try and make it up to her. Now she's targeting and taking all of her anger out on me! I've even got the wounds to prove it!"

"Woah... she lies so effortlessly, you'd almost think she's telling the truth," A quiet voice spoke from beside Mari, listening in on the same conversation. She hadn't even noticed anyone had snuck up on her, their footsteps must have been as light as a feather even. Though with the combination of the undetectable approach and the rather small voice, she had easily identified the person to be San. "You can almost say she's a pathological liar, she's had lots of practice to make herself sound this believable."

"I wouldn't say she's a pathological liar," Mari replied, glancing towards the boy. His eyes were wide of those of a cat's curiosity gleaming through them as he tried to piece together the situation laid before him. "She's had all day to think about how to jab at me for literally attacking her like an animal yesterday, I've been avoiding her presence since I got here."

"I know, you've been avoiding me too," San told her, crossing his arms in what seems like childish frustration. "I'll have you know that I would have definitely let you destroy Jaerin if Wooyoung wasn't there to stop me. I might have even joined you, I don't like a single word that comes out of her mouth."

Mari punched the boy's shoulder in retaliation, watching him wince at her rather hard hit. "Are you out of your mind? Do you know how pissed off the Underboss would be if you fought that girl? You'd have the worst consequences of anyone in that manor!"

"You're my friend though!" San complained, clearly in opposition to Mari's thoughts. "What type of friend would I be if I just let someone I care about get into a fight by themselves? I'm supposed to help you, even if I get beaten or ridiculed in the process." 

The girl rolled her eyes, thoughtlessly waving away the words coming out of his mouth. "San, you have no obligation to help me, you know that right? I don't want you to risk your reputation just because I'm getting into a petty catfight with a girl who can't even hold a knife."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" San questioned, his voice beginning to subconsciously raise due to irritation and desperation. He placed his hands on the girl's shoulders, nearly shaking her aggressively as he tried to get his point across. "Sit there and watch while you fight your subordinates? I'm not gonna let you do things like that alone, I don't care if your father runs the whole damn place or not!"

The entire hallway went silent, only the slight creaking of doors opening and closing, and students muffled chatting in the distance fluttered through the room. Mari's face was etched with pure shock and confusion, slowly processing the words that had come out of the boy's mouth. San seemed to have realized what he said, instinctively covering his mouth with his hands a little too late. "What do... you mean if my father runs the whole place?" She asked him, subconsciously playing dumb yet still hesitant at the same time.

Before San could even reply to her, the teacher's voice rang through their ears. "Choi San? That's you isn't it, I can recognize your voice anywhere. Is everything alright?" The question was followed by the squeaking of a chair and the sound of jingling keys getting closer to them. 

"And that's my cue to leave," Mari mumbled, sidestepping away from San and running down the hallway as fast as she could. For a moment any normal bystander might have thought she was running track for how fast she charged off. But she knew if the teacher caught her after whatever Jaerin had told them? She was one hundred percent not going back home at her desired time. And all Mari wanted to do at this point and time was lay down and never get back up.

Plus, she wasn't mentally prepared to officially confront San about her family. He seemed to have pieced the puzzle together but she wasn't ready to see the final product. 

Mari had been hiding this little bit of information since she first met the boy. She had continuously lied and excused herself from the topic for so long that telling him the truth felt like a foreign thought in her head. She thought she had built up a sturdy brick to keep him locked out of the truth, but it seemed as though she didn't do as good a job as she had thought. That or San picked up a sledgehammer and finally forced his way through. 

She didn't even know if San or the teacher was following her actually, simply letting her feet carry her wherever she felt would be the safest. Where was the safest place for her even? Her home, the manor? She was bound to meet San at one point if she ran in that direction. Mingi's house? It takes too long to sprint, she'd need a car to get there before sundown and she didn't even know how to drive.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," She hissed, skidding to a halt and leaving scuff marks on the ground. She was stuck at a fork in the road, leading down two different hallways Mari had never walked before. Since when was her school this big? Was this what she got for never truly exploring the place in her first year? "This school can't be that big! Just pick a path and run!"

After a quick decision to follow her instincts and run left, a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist, tugging in the opposite direction. Mari felt her stomach to the floor, her brain immediately going into panic mode and seizing any control she had over her body. The last time she was unwillingly dragged somewhere was literally the dad before by her father, and nearly a week ago by Jung Chaeyeon when she had tried to kidnap and kill her.

The girl retaliated on instinct, fight or flight taking over in sudden adrenaline of desperation. Mari grabbed the hand holding her wrist, mustering up all the strength she could at the moment so that she could flip them over her instead. Her attacker seemed to have noticed what was she about to do and quickly let go of her to avoid the incoming pain. She stumbled from the loss of extra weight, nearly threw herself to the ground instead of her target. "Jesus Christ, Mari! What did I ever do to you to make you want to break my bones?"

Her face twisted in confusion at the causal conversation that ensued, the quick change in demeanor nearly giving her head trauma. She turned around to be greeted by the sight of her very tall redheaded friend, his face in a permanent pout in reaction to her actions. "Mingi? What... why would you do that?"

"I was trying to help you?" He complained, looking Mari up and down for the stunt she had tried to pull on. Clearly, Mingi didn't think she had enough strength to literally flip him over her head and onto the ground nor did he that's how she was going to react in the first place. He was a six foot tall man, after all, it was a lot for a girl of her physique and stature. "I was looking for you and then I caught sight of you running like death was right behind you."

She mentally cursed to herself, taking note that there was still the possibility of her being chased down like wild doe. "Uh, yeah I was running from a teacher... listen let's walk and talk okay? Preferably speed walking? Maybe jogging would be faster as well?"

Mingi nodded absentmindedly as Mari began to walk ahead of him, power walking as fast as Mingi's pace would let her. "You must get in trouble a lot," He asked her, glancing behind them to see if he could spot the teacher that was chasing her down. "I mean there's no other reason for you to be desperate to get out of the area."

"Oh yeah definitely," she confessed easily, walking like one of those exercising soccer moms that demand your manager in a retail store. "Almost every teacher in this school hates me. My conduct is bad, my grades are below average, and my attendance is literally atrocious. They always say I'm ruining the school's pristine image but honestly, I could care less. I'm just here to get my diploma and finally be free from this place."

Mingi laughed, one that gives you warmth in your chest as if a child was giggling right in front of you. "You sound exactly like Hongjoong, but you're both so different at the same time. His attendance is really bad and don't even get me started on his conduct. But his grades are the best out of our whole friend group! It's the only thing that's keeping him from being thrown out of the school."

"Ew," Mari responded, scrunching up her nose at the thought. "What is he? An honors student? Does that mean... he's good at math? Because I'm this close to not passing this semester with how low my grade for Ms. Yoo is. Did you know that you could get an F minus? Me neither!"

"Woah..." Mingi mumbled, pure shock evident in his voice. "My grades aren't the best sometimes but even I'm not stupid enough to get an F minus... Do you have a brick instead of brain Mari?" 

She stopped in her tracks for a moment, silently threatening to punch the boy. Mingi retaliated like a puppy, flinching back and taking a couple of steps away from her to keep a safe distance. He definitely wasn't about to risk getting hit by Mari when she had already proven herself brave enough to flip him over her head. "Sorry... but if you need a tutor, me and Hongjoong are here! I would say Yunho too but... the last time I asked to see his grades he went home immediately after instead."

Mari snorted at the thought of Yunho immediately packing his bags after getting asked about his grades. She could only assume they didn't live up to the grades Hongjoong and Mingi get. A fellow man of the school struggle, she understood the pain. "I'm kinda hard to teach when it comes to academics, but I'll take you up on that offer one day."

The boy smiled widely at her words, glad she had actually accepted his offer instead of turning him down. In that split moment, his eyes gleamed in realization, claps his hands together as he started to quickly his pace to match Mari's. "Oh, right I had completely forgotten why I had come to look for you!"

Confusion spread across the girl's face like wildfire, thought a bit of intrigue was sparked in her eyes as well. "We kept mentioning Hongjoong yet I forgot he's the reason I came and searched you out. Earlier today, he randomly collapsed out of the blue in the hallway. I think he came down with fever or something and he's been in the infirmary inside before the break. I tried to tell you when it happened but I couldn't find you anywhere."

"What?" Mari blurted out, stopping in her tracks almost immediately to process the information she had been given. "What the... how did even happen? Why the hell is he still at the school in the first place? He should be at home right now!"

"We tried calling his dad," Mingi shrugged, "but he didn't answer no matter how much Yunho blew up his phone. And when we tried to call his mom she said that he was fine and was probably faking it for attention. Even the school nurse tried to get her to realize he wasn't feeling well and she hung up on her."

Her eyes twitched listening to the boy's words, crossing her arms in annoyance as she muttered," that's one fucked up family for you. His father won't even pick up the phone and his mother doesn't even care. I should have known."

"Yunho is with him right now to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid, but he's going to stop by the store to try and get medicine to help soothe the fever. I would stay and watch him myself, but I'm the only one who drives and I was extremely low on gas arriving here this morning. I don't want to suddenly stop in the middle of the road while trying to take him back to my house," Mingi confessed, a guilty expression on his face as he fiddled around with his hands. "So I was hoping you could watch him for us until we both got back?"

She thought about the fact that she had arrived at the school with both San and Wooyoung by her side, so they were expecting her to return them so they could leave back to the Seo Manor together. But she couldn't just leave Hongjoong alone at the school while he was ill, that's the most inconsiderate thing a person could do. "You know what... yeah. Of course, I'll watch him for you, as long as both of you return as fast as possible. I'm still getting chased by a teacher and my friends are expecting me to walk home with them."

A boyish and wide smile grew on Mingi's face, his shoulders relaxing from unknown tension he had built up inside of him. "Thank you so much, Mari, you're a lifesaver! I'll be back with Yunho as fast as I possibly can." He quickly dragged her into a hug, tight yet warm like a bear's. She tensed up almost immediately, not used to this much physical contact with him. Though Mingi quickly let go, the hug only lasted for a few seconds before he went dashing off towards what Mari assumes was the student parking lot.

Thought before he was fully out of sight, he came to a halt, running on his heels to look back at her. "Oh, by the way, nice snake ring! I didn't think you'd really be the jewelry type, to be honest, but the snakes fit you, not in a bad way, of course. I just think it looks nice."


	33. Ten Minutes

Mari slowly opened the door to the infirmary, peaking her head through to catch a small glimpse of what was going on inside. She spotted Yunho sitting in a revolving chair, rhythmically swaying himself left and right with his foot while keeping his arms crossed and his head hanging low. He seemed to be drifting off to sleep, though forcing himself to push through and stay awake to watch over his ill friend. "Yikes... Yunho have you been getting any rest recently or what?"

He jolted up in the chair at the call of his name, glancing around the infirmary in search of the voice's owner before finally turning to glance at the door. "Mari," He responded, his confused expression soon melting into one of relief. "I was beginning to think Mingi had gotten lost or something. I wouldn't be surprised if he did."

"He caught me just in time actually," She told him, closing the door behind her as she entered. "Had he been a few seconds late or just slightly smarter in the head he would have been eating my dust by now."

Yunho tilted his head like a dog, not really understanding what she meant but ignoring it either way. He pushed himself in the revolving chair and rolled towards Mari as he spoke, "Hopefully I won't be gone long. I know the nearest corner store a little far from here but Mingi is supposed to drive me back after he gets gas. I'll let you know when I'm coming back though, I'll text you or something."

Mari nodded in response, nearly forgetting she had gotten a new phone after her last was destroyed in a complication. "What, you don't even have my phone number, how will you do that?"

He smiled at her as he skidded to stop in the chair, pulling a phone out of his jacket pocket. "Seonghwa had given me his belongings to look after and I had snatched his phone up like the nosey friend I am," Yunho answered, a playful smirk on his face as he waved around Hongjoong's phone. "You want to look through it with me later? He's got... a lot of interesting stuff on here. Nothing gross just..."

Yunho's eyes darted between the phone and Mari. "Just interesting stuff, that's all."

"Yeah, no thanks," Mari declined, taking note of his clearly mischievous demeanor. Whatever he was thinking of doing, she wanted absolutely no part in it. "Just do what you need to do and come back, no detours, no distractions. I'd like to go home at one point in the next hour or so."

The boy rolled his eyes, standing up out of the chair and digging his jacket pockets. "Yeah yeah, what are you? My mom? You're no fun when Hongjoong isn't actively in the conversation." He complained with a pout, just slightly mumbling under his breath. After a few moments of rummaging, he took out a badge and threw towards Mari. She caught it without a second thought, reacting on instinct as he spoke again. "That's the nurse's badge. She gave it to me before she stepped out, use it if a teacher comes in here and starts nagging at you to leave."

She nodded as the boy finally walked out of the room, leaving her alone in the infirmary. It was quiet in the room, a suffocating quiet even. Mari had almost forgotten that she was actually in the room with Hongjoong. "Oh shit, I forgot I was even here for him for a moment," The girl mumbled, turning towards the rather uncomfortable hospital beds that had been donated to the school who knows how long ago. She spotted his fiery red hair almost immediately, his head resting on his arm for comfort.

"I come all this way just to take care of him and he's sleeping?" She snorted, sitting in the revolving chair Yunho had left behind and rolling towards him. What a waste of her time, Mari expected him to be awake at just the sound of her voice. That's how he acted every time she was around him.

The girl nearly slammed into the bed from how hard she pushed herself, skidding to a halt right before she hit him. The boy was facing the wall instead of towards her, probably trying to block any sort of light that would make his headache more than it already was while he was sleeping. He looked extremely exhausted, stressed even, as he laid there. She could definitely tell he felt like he was on fire as well, practically sweating bullets and making his hair and clothes stick to his skin.

She sighed quietly to herself, twisting the ring on her finger subconsciously as she watched him. How did he even end up like this? What was he doing beforehand that forced him to come down with a fever of all things? Mingi had made it sound like it happened completely out of the blue, but that couldn't have been possible. Maybe he was working too hard on something and the stress had gotten to him? Honestly, it seemed likely knowing how he acted.

"God, how stupid can you be to not take care of yourself," She mumbled, punching his shoulder instinctively. Yet when he suddenly yelped from the impact, Mari immediately pushed herself away from the bed. She forgot that sickness makes a person generally weaker than normal, which meant what would normally be harmless attacks left more than just a tiny aching pain. "Oh shit, I'm so sorry. It was an accident... kinda-sorta-not-really but I really didn't mean to hit you."

He glanced over his shoulder to look at her, a drowsy look in his eyes, and flushed cheeks as if he was under the influence. Hongjoong took a moment to take in the sight he was greeted by, his brain not processing the information as fast as it usually did. "Mari?"

"Unfortunately," She shrugged her shoulders, allowing herself to scoot her chair closer now that he was awake. Mari reached over and placed the back of her hand on his forehead before doing the exact same to his neck. She didn't know how hot he was before she had come in the infirmary, but he sure was burning up now. "What even happened? Mingi told me you had collapsed in the middle of the hall earlier. If you were feeling sick earlier today you should have just stayed home like, I don't know, a normal person?"

Hongjoong didn't respond, in fact, he didn't even seem to listen to a word that was coming out of her mouth. He simply stared at her in a daze, his mind in a completely other world. "Hongjoong?" Mari asked again, trying to reel him back into reality. "Hongjoong, you in there?"

"Where's... Yunho?" He questioned, talking a little slower than normal.

"He left not too long ago to get you medicine," Mari responded, pointing towards the door. "The school nurse can't give you medicine without your explicit permission, and I can only assume you were out like a light when you got here."

He nodded his head in understanding, taking a few moments of silence before turning his body to face her and raising his arms out towards her. "Then come here."

Mari narrowed her eyes at him, rolling back a few times to keep a distance between herself and Hongjoong. "What, are you crazy? No way. Even if I wanted to, you're sick. I don't want you spreading your nasty fever germs all over me, I'd rather not test the patience of my immune system."

"A fever isn't contagious, Mari," He corrected her, nodding in and out of sleep as he laid there. She rolled her eyes at the boy's answer as he continued to speak. "There's no one here. You don't have to be afraid of anyone catching us or something. You're just laying down with me."

"You're sweating, no," She insisted, pushing her chair even farther away from him. Mari waited for him to respond again, expecting some sort of witty but weak comment to fly out of his mouth. Though the boy had drifted off to sleep again, his arms dangling off the side of the bed in a rather uncomfortable position. 

That's how her next ten minutes had gone, simply spinning in the revolving chair and checking her phone for Yunho's text while Hongjoong slept out his fever. Mari had even started playing with strands of the boy's scarlet red subconsciously as she played with her phone, the notion almost second nature for her at this point. It wasn't even awkward to her, the silence between them rather comfortable even. 

She glanced down towards the boy when she felt a tug at her hand, catching sight of Hongjoong taking ahold of her hand gingerly and staring at the snake ring on her index finger. "I didn't know you own rings," He commented, admiring the engraved design of the serpent on the band. "Where'd you get this from?"

The corners of her mouth twisted into a frown, giving the silvery ring a quick glance before turning back to her phone screen. "It was a hand me down from my mother. My father said she wanted to give it to me at one point, but she had never gotten the chance to do so. I would have cared about it a little bit more if he hadn't chucked it at him as a weak way to get me to forgive him for an argument we had." 

He nodded in understanding, looking up at her through his lashes. "But you still care right? There's no other reason you'd be wearing it if you didn't."

Instead of responding to him, Mari pressed her hand to his forehead again. "Jeez, this fever of yours just won't go down." She said instead. "Maybe this isn't just a fever... was anyone around you sick at one point? You might have caught whatever they had."

"Then the only person I want to be around is you," He murmured, holding her hand much tighter than he was beforehand.

The girl rolled her eyes at his words, putting her phone down to give him her full attention. "I'm being serious right now. You sure no one ever came across you and was ill as well?"

He didn't answer her, his grip around her hand tightening as he fidgeted with her snake ring. "Just ten minutes, Mari," Hongjoong began, softly tugging her hand towards him as if he was trying to force her to lay there with him. "Ten minutes just lay with me for ten minutes, that's all I ask. That's the only medicine I'll ever need to feel better."

"Hongjoong—" The door to the infirmary slammed open, disrupting the quiet peace the two had established. Mari's head whipped around towards the door in a rush, taken by surprise from the sudden intrusion. There in the door frame stood a man who radiated with pure power, dressing in a formal suit and tie and amused smile playing on his face.

"What a surprise," The man spoke, analyzing the scene before him. His mere gaze made Mari want to slip her hand out of Hongjoong's yet his tight grip around her palm told her otherwise. "This is the second time I've caught you two together, what a funny coincidence."

What in the hell was Hongjoong's father doing here? He didn't even pick up Yunho's phone calls to know that something had gone wrong. Perhaps his mother was gossiping about her son's situation to him? But if he wasn't even going to pick up several urgent phone calls from the close friend of his son, why would he approach now? "Mari, right? It's a pleasure to see you again, I hope you've been well."

"How'd you know he was here?" She immediately asked, her body tensing up as the man came towards them. "You didn't pick up any of Yunho's calls, I doubt he left you any voicemails to listen to either," Mari hissed, willingly rolling herself in between the two.

He laughed at her aggression, holding his hands behind his back as he stopped in front of her. "I'm a very busy man you know, I don't get to have the same amount of free time you teenagers do." He shrugged, speaking rather nonchalantly with her. "My wife had told me of the news she had received from Jeong Yunho, furious she was. So I had to do what every concerned parent should do and come check upon him. Unfortunately, I've come here later than I'd like."

"That doesn't make any sense," Hongjoong intervened, sitting up from his former position. "You've never come here just to check on me. The word concerned isn't even in your vocabulary."

The man's expression turned into a sharp and cold glare, pointing daggers at his son's head for such a statement. "Of course it's in my vocabulary. You're the only son I've got left," He assured him, reaching out his hand to press it against his forehead. "Why wouldn't I be concerned over your wellbeing?"

Without thinking Mari grabbed the man's wrist, stopping him from even touching Hongjoong. Her grip grew tighter with a nerve in her body that was being struck, giving the man an irritated and strained smile. "No need to worry, sir," She insisted, digging her nails into his skin. "I'm taking very good care of your son until his friends return with the medicine to help calm down his fever. No need to be concerned when you've got such a good friend looking after him."

His father's expression was unreadable, his eyes darting from Mari's daring action to Hongjoong exhausted expression. After a few moments of silence, he laughed. It boomed throughout the infirmary loudly, echoing against the walls and into the hallway as he retracted his hand away from him. "Of course! Everyone who surrounds Hongjoong takes such good care of him! I don't even know why I was worried."

Mari let go of his wrist as well, dropping her hands to her side as the man took a step back. "You're so peculiar Mari," He complimented, sending shivers down her spine. "Why, it makes sense as to why you've been able to stick around Hongjoong for so long. Usually, anyone who approaches him runs away after a moment spent with him. Truly, you are a remarkable person."

"Are you done?" Hongjoong snapped, irritation peaking in his rather weak tone. "You did what you came to do, now leave."

"So harsh, in front of your friend even?" He gasped, covering his mouth with his hand mockingly as he took a look at the two once more. The man scoffed, a curious smile playing on his lips as he spoke again. "I'll be taking my leave then since my son is in such good hands. Oh and Mari, I hope you haven't forgotten about my invite to having dinner with my family. My wife would just love you, I'm sure. And I'm still rather interested in getting to know you a bit more."

Mari internally rolled her eyes at the man's reminder before nodding. "Of course, I'd love to have dinner with you and your family one day. I'm just rather busy at the moment, that's all." 

"Perfect," he grinned, though the grin was a little too wide and condescending for her liking. "Do you hear that Hongjoong? I hope you'll actually be present for one of our dinners this time instead of running off somewhere. It would be such bad hosting if you do."

"Go," Hongjoong hissed at him.

The man finally disappeared through the infirmary door after another annoyed response from the boy. The moment he had left was like a breath of fresh hair for both of them. Mari had only encountered the man twice but she was one hundred percent sure now that if he came around action she'd be the one to draw blood first. She wouldn't say she had a temper, but it felt that way with every word that trickled out of his father's mouth.

"God, I knew adults were annoying to deal with but he's on another level. Every time he talks my patience gets tested, I swear." She grumbled, spinning her chair back around to face Hongjoong.

He nodded in agreement, laying back down completely on the bed before reaching his hands out to Mari once more. "Totally a good enough reason to lay down with me for ten minutes now, right?" 

"Will you quit it?" Mari retaliated, earning a very small giggle from Hongjoong. His father took a lot more energy out of both of them than they thought. So needless to say, he did end up getting the ten minutes he was begging for. Even longer than that even, with the boy dozing right off to sleep within minutes. If there's one thing Mari could say about those longer than ten minutes, it would be that Hongjoong must give really nice hugs. She wouldn't mind spending another ten minutes with him again.


	34. Twisting the Knife

"I wish I could say I didn't expect this, but I did." Wooyoung nodded, his shoulders beginning to tense in response to Mari's story. "It was only a matter of time before San started to understand what was going on around him. I won't lie, we have been off of our secretive game for a while."

The girl had spent thirty minutes sitting on her bed with Wooyoung, resisting the urge to let out a bloodcurdling scream every time she recalled a moment from the day before. In one singular afternoon, the day she had tried to avoid every living soul in her school, turned into what felt like a complete nightmare. Hongjoong collapsing without her knowing till the last second, his father coming and harassing the both of them, and worst of all, San exposing the fact that he knew his boss and her were related.

How long as she tried to keep up this lie to San, three or more years if she remembered correctly? There was no doubt that she had gotten comfortable, relaxing around him the closer they became. Yet that made Mari falter, blindsiding herself to all the possible hints that she had dropped to lead San to the conclusion he's come to. How many had went unseen by her and were picked by San piece by piece, helping him reveal the truth she tried so hard to lock him out of?

What's even worse was that while whatever small clues Mari and Wooyoung had left behind them could be second guessed and questioned, the scene she pulled in front of him during her catfight with Jaerin left no room for clues. The girl and the boss's actions that day could only leave one thought in the mind, that the relationship between the two was more tangled than anyone had originally thought. Had it been anyone else, they would have been punished or killed on spot for defying the boss's demands and harming a high ranking member of the faction.

But Mari? She had returned in one peace with furrowed brows and a ring on her index finger. Any other member of the faction would be dragged out of the boss's office, their blood leaving behind a trail of crimson red as they disposed of the body. If that wasn't the biggest dead giveaway to San, then she didn't know what else could be.

"What am I going to do?" She complained, running her hands through her hair aggressively, nearly pulling strands out in the process. "I'm not ready for this conversation... I was never going to be ready for this conversation! I mean... What do you think he'll say when we actually sit down and talk about this? 'Hey, I know you lied about your family for three plus years but that's okay because we're best friends'? I've already pissed off San once, I don't want to be in his line of fire again."

Wooyoung nodded, leaning his back against the girl's pillows in thought. "If he was really mad at you, you would have had a confrontation right then and there when he told you."

"But—"

"Yet he tried to keep it a secret," Her friend pointed out, not even giving her a chance to speak. "He blurted out what he knew in frustration, not because he was genuinely angry with you for keeping a secret from him for so long."

Well, he wasn't wrong. San didn't seem like he was mad at her for keeping a secret when the two had talked, more like he had been frustrated with her undermining his care for her. Mari groaned into the palm of her hands, letting herself fall back first onto the bed and resisted the screams that threatened to spill out her mouth. What was Mari so afraid of anyway? This shouldn't be that difficult for her to comprehend. 

If what Wooyoung said was true, that meant that San wasn't mad at her for the secret she had tried to maintain for the entirety of their friendship. It sure felt like he should be though, she knew she'd go feral if someone else kept such an important detail like this to themselves. "San is really good at hiding his emotions," Mari countered, sitting up almost immediately at the fact. "What if he's truly pissed off at me and he's hiding it behind fake kindness?"

"Mari, you'd know if he was truly pissed off at you or not," Wooyoung reminded her, alluding back to the time Mari had really gotten on San's bad side. 

Mari must be off her game today, every excuse she made was immediately counteracted by Wooyoung's logical thinking. Since when did he start using his brain? She always thought that if she rattled Wooyoung around hard enough his brain would sound like sleigh bells. "Whether you like it or not... one of you are going to confront the other about what happened yesterday."

"And I'm not ready to be confronted!" Mari complained, nearly pulling her hair out at the thought. "Usually I'm the one doing the confronting, not the confronted! What am I supposed to do? In a situation like this, no less?"

"Deal with it?" Wooyoung suggested, passing it off as a joke just before Mari could attack him. "No but seriously, you just need to figure out what you're going to say when he finally asks you about what happened. Just... tell the truth. He is your friend, right?"

The girl let her hair fall in her face as she sat up, keeping her hands in her lap to stop herself from grabbing at the strands and nearly yanking her scalp off. "We are."

"Alright then, don't be afraid to tell him the truth. I'll list a few questions he might ask and you answer them, okay?" Wooyoung offered, sitting up from where he was as Mari gave him a weak nod of approval. "Is your father really the boss of the Seo Faction."

Mari grumbled an answer, regretting agreeing to test questionnaire. "What was that? I can't hear you when you talk low, Mari."

"Yes," she grumbled a bit louder than before, annoyance bubbling up inside of her with Wooyoung's sudden attitude.

"Huh? I'm sorry you're going to have to speak up when you talk, I can barely hear a word coming out of your mouth," He complained, leaning dangerously close to her in an attempt to hear her better.

"I said yes, Jesus Christ Wooyoung!" She retaliated, shoved the boy back to where he came. "You're supposed to be helping me, not getting on my nerves!"

The boy threw his head back in laughter, nearly tumbling off the side of her bed in the process. His little mischievous giggles filled her room up like water to cup, a sound she had nearly forgotten about while spending time at Mingi's house. "I'm sorry, you're just so awkward with it all! How are you going to hold a conversation with him when you can't even answer a question coming from me? And I already know the answer!"

Mari wanted to slam her head into a wall but dropped her head into her hands instead. What was she going to do? Wooyoung was right, if she couldn't even answer a question from him how could she face San? "I'm so... so screwed."

"Do you wanna try again?" Wooyoung asked, earning an aggravated glare from the girl. Another fit of laughter escaped his mouth at her reaction, finding enjoyment in her stressed out situation. "You can either try again with me or go find San and stutter so hard that you'll just shut up and walk away."

"Wow, you're so encouraging." Mari hissed in response. He smiled at her, only finding humor in her reactions more than anything else. "At this point, I don't even want to confront him. You think I can trap myself in my room long enough for San to forget anything he's seen or heard?"

"You go to school with him Mari," Wooyoung reminded her, "You also work with him, here, in the Seo Faction. You can't run from San, he's everywhere you are. Unless you decide to run off unannounced to Hongjoong again," He told her, a bit of bitterness rolling off his tongue and a sour expression donning his face.

Mari couldn't lie, she thought about it for a moment before responding to him. "If I disappear from this house one more time without telling my father, he's really going to put me on lockdown for good. Plus I haven't spent much time with you these past few weeks and if I leave you alone again you're going to pull out your own hair from being ignored."

"You're right but you didn't need to say it." Wooyoung pouted, clenching his chest as if she had stabbed him right in the heart. "You've been leaving me alone so much more often recently, what happened to giving me all of the attention I required? I'm like a garden plant you know, I need special treatment in order to grow properly."

"You got special treatment in school yet still dropped out in our first year of high school so I don't think that statement really resonated with you," Mari nonchalantly jabbed back at him. "Plus if you were a plant, you'd be a garden weed."

Wooyoung opened his mouth to counteract her words, fight back her lighthearted insults with one of his own little concoctions of words. But then someone knocked on her door. Both of the teenagers turned their heads towards the doors, tilting their heads to the side like confused dogs. "Come in?"

The door swung open quickly, revealing a panicked and concerned Yeosang on the other side. He seemed to have just woken up, his hair tousled in all sorts of directions, and wearing mismatched clothes from head to toe. Yet at the same time, he seemed... exhausted. Exhausted as in he had been sprinting from point A to point B. The consigliere's son looked like he was on the verge of breaking a sweat, visibly breathing hard and trying to catch his breath. 

"Yo," Wooyoung greeted first, looking Yeosang up and down cautiously. "Yeosang... are you... are you okay?"

He hesitated to respond, staring at the two with the most emotion Mari had ever seen from her. Waves of disbelief and shock, mixed with a hint of anxiety hitting her like a typhoon. Yeosang's grip on the door handle tightened as he walked inside, glancing behind him to make sure no one had followed him in. "It seems we've got... a slight problem. No, slight isn't the right word. We've got a huge problem."

The two friends shared looks of confusion with each other as Yeosang ushered himself farther into her room, smoothing out the flyaways of his hair as he approached. "I was... I was in the Kang Manor earlier and my father and the Underboss were there together. They were discussing something serious and hoping that it was some sort of clue to Kim Faction's murder attempts or the target on Mari's back, I listened in."

"I swear to god if you tell me that the Underboss or the Consigliere are plotting against Mari I would literally scream," Wooyoung interrupted, rolling his eyes at the thought. The girl glared in his direction for talking out of turn, if he didn't have something useful to say he shouldn't have opened his mouth at all. Downplaying Yeosang's urgency was a horrible idea since he was truly their eyes on the close circle that followed her father.

Though the boy chuckled, trying to High his nervousness with the light hearted giggle of his laugh. "I would much rather have that be the case in all honesty. I would willingly allow you both to fight my father if given the chance."

"Good to know," Mari noted, grinning at the thought of potentially beating the Consigliere up herself. He wasn't the worst person in the universe, but the girl just didn't like adults in general. She'd jump at any chance she got to teach the adults around her a lesson.

Yeosang fidgeted around with his hands, uncharacteristically anxious compared to all the other times he shared information with them. Wooyoung seemed to pick up on the Consigliere's son's unusual nervous habit as well, going completely slight instead of making another joke of the situation. "Instead of that... there is a traitor within our ranks again, but not like the last traitor we had. They've been sharing very confidential information with the Kim Faction from what I heard the Underboss say."

"Like..." Mari trailed, rummaging around her head for a good example. "Who are our associates? Where are we getting our weaponry from?"

"Like how many soldiers we have on hand," Yeosang corrected, counting on his fingers of all he had heard. "How much our allies and associates are supplying us and what they are supplying us with, who our high ranking members are, weak points of our territory, our weakest links in the faction."

Wooyoung shuttered at the information dropped on them. "It sounds like we're preparing for war."

"It might as well be. They've got information on the Consigliere, Underboss, and of course, Mari's father," Yeosang listed, biting his lip as questions began to fester up in his head. "It's only a short amount of time before they figure out all of the Yakuza and Lee Faction's profiles and use it against us. They're planning something and they're trying to figure out who and where to attack first."

Mari nodded her head in understanding, trying to rack her brain around everything she's been told. Private information was leaking out of the Seo Faction like blood to a wound, slowly spewing out more and more as they searched for bandages to close the wound. "If someone is taking information from the Seo Faction and bringing it to the Kim Faction, that's probably how word of my mother's trip to China got out and lead to the ambush. And it's probably why they're targeting me now too, because of some bug that's been two timing us!"

"That's a very likely answer, but I don't know about the second part of your statement," Yeosang told her, crossing his arms as he thought for a moment. "When you began to do work for the Seo Faction, you were listened to as a soldier. Your specific connection to the Boss isn't even mentioned in any sort of legal documents for the Seo Faction. So as far as the Kim Faction knows, you and the boss's daughter are two entirely different people."

"So why the hell am I being targeted? And by some new unknown unit no less," She grumbled, falling back into the bed. Just when she thought he had some sort of lead on her situation she was right back to square one. 

The boy snorted at her frustration, side eyeing her as he spoke, "I don't blame them for trying to kill you, you're so annoying and stubborn that I'd want you eradicated from existence too," 

Mari immediately shoved as hard as possible, nearly throwing him off of the bed and onto the ground. He landed with a heavy thud, yelping at the sudden shock of pain that shot up from his shoulder. "Now is not the time to be making jokes like that! What if someone heard you and took you seriously? There are people out there that are malicious enough to twist your words into something sinister you know."

"Your doors are closed," He grumbled, laying out on the ground for a few more seconds before forcing himself up. "No one can take my words wrong if they can't hear me."

"Unfortunately there's more to this growing problem then than just having our information leaked out," Yeosang noted, making both Mari and Wooyoung whip their heads around to him. There was more than Yeosang was letting on? There was already a traitor in their ranks willingly giving out crucial information to the Kim Faction that could start out an all-out war. This would be the peak of both faction's rivalry and a very bloody one at that. What could add on more problems than being on the verge of all out underground warfare?

"We've picked you little bits of information about the unknown unit that's targeting Mari," He explained. "We don't know enough about the men who are in said unit, the Kim Faction has been extremely careful with who they're handing their knowledge to. But upon further investigation of the place your mother was ambushed and your incident at the now burned down Utopia, I think it's safe to say that these two situations are connected. Meaning the same people who are targeting Mari now in an attempt to kidnap or murder her were also the same people who had nearly killed San and brought your mother to her demise."

"That means this group targeting Mari isn't a new unit after all," Wooyoung realized, his eyes widening at the thought. "It's an assassination division, they've been planning our downfall before we even knew of their existence. And they probably want to use Mari as a way to break into the Seo Faction's defenses and kill off the boss themselves.”


	35. White Flag

Mari felt the shift in the atmosphere at the Seo Manor very heavily. There was always a serious undertone in the faction's place of business, but it wasn't enough to disturb the flow of her day to day life. But this time it felt like someone had dropped a piano on her head, the pain ringing out into every inch of her body. 

The Underboss and Consigliere had never explicitly stated what the Kim Faction was up to, but she could definitely tell that her father had gotten word of the intrusion. The number of armed soldiers around the Seo Faction increased intensely as well as the number of people being placed as guards around the manor itself. Out of sheer anxiousness, Wooyoung had been placed as Mari's guard once again but more permanently this time. He was forced to go everywhere with her and if he left her side the punishment wouldn't be a simple slap on the wrist like normal. 

The Underboss began bringing in certain members of the faction for questioning as well, trying to find the fly within their ranks so that they could eliminate the threat immediately. He wasn't just calling regular soldiers and bullying them into revealing any information they may have been hiding from him though. He was calling high ranking officials of Seo Faction, Lee Faction, and Japanese Yakuza. No one could be trusted outside of her father's close group of associates, they had to make sure even their allies weren't trying to sell them out.

Yeosang had been put to work as well, tasked by his father to work closely with the intelligence team to keep track of the Kim Faction's movements. He wanted to make sure that all eyes were on the rival faction, analyzing their every move and soaking in all the information they could steal from the Kim Faction. During this search for anything that could prepare them for an all-out war with the other faction, Yeosang had dived even deeper into the aimless hole of the assassination unit in hopes of discovering any new knowledge he hadn't received beforehand. 

Mari could only wish him luck as she wasn't too sure about whether or not he was going to find anything new. Unlike the Kim Faction, they didn't have anyone on the inside to snag any of the information they needed. However, with the news of the rival faction's frighteningly large amounts of knowledge on them, she could only assume they were planning to send someone in soon. 

She could assume that their choice might have been San, seeing as he was a rather capable member of the Seo Faction and the Underboss had the boy under his wing for a very long time. Yet because of his presence during the Kim Faction ambush, he already had eyes on him. Whether the rival faction knew if he was alive or not, they knew his face. Maybe they even caught wind of his name. That was all they needed to put a target in his head if he ever decided to show his face around them again.

Maybe they'd end up sending Jongho? The Lee Faction had been dragging him around with them everywhere they go for a while now, so he must have held some sort of importance to them. Whether it be his strength or intelligence, one of those must be rather valuable to them. That or Jaerin was taking Jongho around with her on purpose, practically waving him around in the air like he was some toy that Mari couldn't get a hold of. 

It was rather evident that Mari was fond of Jongho's presence after the Utopia incident, so she wouldn't be surprised if Jaerin was using him for that purpose.

"I'm so glad I dropped out when I had the chance," Wooyoung commented, throwing his head towards the sky and stretching his arms out. "All the stuff you're learning seems so... unnecessary? And not just because your whole adult life will be dedicated to kicking ass and having authority over an entire army of men. Being a senior looks like it's more stressful than working for the Seo Faction."

"You weren't even sitting in the classroom," Mari mentioned, crossing her arms as she addressed him. When her father said Wooyoung had to be everywhere Mari was, he wasn't joking. The boy wasn't enrolled in the school, but posing as a student that attended. A few days ago San had gotten an extra set of the school's uniform for Wooyoung so that they could easily sneak the boy off and on the campus whenever they pleased. 

She didn't think it would work at first, as Wooyoung had previously been caught on campus as an outsider. Yet the uniform somehow made him indistinguishable from the rest of the student body, blending him in perfectly. Not a single form of authority batted an eye at Wooyoung's presence, immediately assuming he was just another one of the children they were forced to look after for several hours of the day. The name tag attached to Wooyoung's shirt didn't even have his name on it, it was San's full name.

"I may not have been in that classroom with you, but I sure as hell heard everything I needed to hear," He clarified. "All of it is just a bunch of gibberish to my brain, a lot of unnecessary gibberish. Where are the classes that are interesting and fun? Maybe even a little useful to life outside of people's parents?"

"Ms. Yoo would rather die than make her class fun," Mari mumbled, watching Wooyoung complain to the sky about her classes. "But hey, at least it's a breath of fresh air from whatever the hell is going on at the manor, right? You're not surrounded by men strapped with dangerous weapons, my father isn't here to nag your ears off about staying by my side..."

Wooyoung shrugged in response, his reaction to her words awfully dry. "Yeah, I guess so. But you know, San isn't here. So it's not as fun as it could be."

"No, San is here." Mari corrected. "He's just been avoiding me. I mean, I know I was avoiding him at first, but now he's avoiding me. You know I tried to be secretive while avoiding him, I didn't want to hurt his feelings or anything, I just wasn't mentally ready for the potential onslaught of emotions us talking would give me. But San is blatantly ignoring me! He'll see me in the hallways and literally start sprinting away in the opposite direction! Maybe it's because he's actually mad at me for lying to him like I said he'd be. Maybe he's just—"

"Mari," Wooyoung cut her off, a slightly annoyed yet assumed expression donning his face. "You're rambling."

Mari resisted the urge to chew on her nails, guilt eating up inside of her the longer San ignored her. Usually, she wouldn't be this bothered by him ignoring her. She knew people needed space to clear their minds at times and she wasn't one to intrude. But the mere fact that the two of them would make eye contact and San would immediately look for a way out of her line of sight? It threw her whole world off balance, more so than the sudden arming of the Seo Faction did. 

She had tried to approach him several times that week, cornering the boy off so that he'd have no way to escape her and be forced to face her whether he liked it or not. Yet he was sly like a cat, easily slipping out of her grasp and disappearing into a crowd without a trace. When he was present at the Seo Manor, he'd run off on a mission or even stay by the Underboss's side in order to keep Mari at bay. 

She didn't know what she had done specifically in order to make him feel as though she couldn't be approached at all, so at the moment she could only assume her lying to him for several years straight took a toll on his trust with her. It was understandable, but even Mari knew they'd have to talk out the problem at one point.

"Yeah, sorry, I just," Mari trailed off, a grimace growing across her face. "I don't know what to do. I want to make up and explain myself, even if I'm not really prepared for it at the moment, but he's not even giving me the chance to get close."

Wooyoung stood there for a moment, thinking of a quick solution to her situation. "Well... when you're not around, San still approaches me. Maybe I can lure him into being in the same room as you and that way I can stop him from escaping and you two can clear your differences."

"Thank you for the suggestion," Mari told him, a strained smile on her face. "But I get the unfortunate feeling that you might end up getting scratched in the eyes by him or something."

The boy thought about it for a moment before nodding. "Well, yeah, you're not wrong. You know his nails have been getting longer than normal too. I could end up with a genuine scar... or even worse! He tears my entire eye out of its socket! Then I'll be half blind for the rest of my life... but it would really cool to get like a glass eye or something so I could pop it in and out for a party trick or something."

"I hate the fact that it sounds like you're considering actually letting him tear out your eye," Mari mumbled, a judgmental stare resting on the boy's figure.

He shrugged in response to her, his signature smile beaming at her as if Wooyoung wasn't planning to nearly destroy his facial features for a party trick. "I mean, come on. It would be pretty cool, wouldn't it?"

"No. Wooyoung. Every day you put your life on the line just existing next to me, do you want to make that even harder on yourself?"

A pout formed on the boy's lips at her words, crossing his arms like a frustrated child and mumbling something incoherent under his breath. Mari resisted the urge to turn and force the words out of his mouth as if he was going to say something about her he should say it loud and clear for everyone to hear, but she stopped. Just as she was about to turn the corner and enter right back into the school's building, a figure was blocking her path. Unwillingly blocking her path.

San stood there like a deer in headlights, his eyes wide and his feet frozen to the ground. Both Wooyoung and Mari stood still as if any sudden movements would scare him away. He seemed like he was in a rush, his chest rising and falling with rapid breaths and his eyes darting everywhere but theirs. "San—"

"Oh, I didn't know you attended this school too!" An unusually chirpy voice spoke, a hint of mockery in its undertones. Mari audibly groaned in realization, biting her lip as Jaerin peered from around the corner where San had appeared. She was staring straight at Wooyoung, not even acknowledging Mari's presence. "I must say, Jung Wooyoung, our uniform does look rather good on you. Tell me, how do you feel about wearing formal wear more often? I think a suit would just highlight your facial features perfectly."

"What do you want, Jaerin?" Mari scowled, trying to keep her temper from flaring up. The last time she had spoken to the Lee Faction heir was when she nearly pulled her hair out, attacking the girl as if she was a wild dog. Jaerin hadn't gotten any payback since that day no matter how hard she tried, so needless to say Mari wasn't looking forward to this interaction. 

She shoved herself past San, the boy giving her an offended glare as she stepped in front of Mari. "Actually, I was looking just for you! See, I noticed you and Choi San tend to hang around each other. So I thought he knew where you were at the moment. He kept telling me no... but it seems like you three just gravitate towards each other."

"Yeah, that's kinda how friendship works?" Wooyoung interrupted, annoyance peering through his voice as he spoke to her. Both of them took note of how San used Jaerin's intervention as a distraction, turning on his heel with an apologetic look on his face before booking it as far as he possibly could away from them. Mari took a step toward to push past Jaerin, but the girl simply blocked her path so that she could stay in her sights. 

Mari glanced around the area, taking note of whether the school's security cameras were watching them or not. Everywhere Jaerin goes she's constantly trying to cause trouble for Mari, and if they get into a fight here? The teachers will eat that right up, anything to prove that Mari was a burden on their school's name. She had no forms of academic authority that would vouch for her innocence like Jaerin. All she had was Wooyoung and her father's influence.

Jaerin's eyes twitched at Wooyoung's attitude but simply ignored it to address Mari again. "Oh, I just wanted to check up on you! You know, with all that's happening in the Seo Faction at the moment... I think you'd be rather stressed out. Elevated security? Members of the faction being brought in for questioning? Untrustworthiness evident throughout the whole faction? It's like it's got you in a chokehold."

"Unfortunately," Mari responded, narrowing her eyes at Jaerin and taking a step back away from her. Wooyoung seemed to notice her reaction, subconsciously placing himself between the two just in case the girl decided to lunge at the Lee Faction heir. Jaerin was so good at bringing out the worst at Mari, every single word the girl let fall off her tongue was like she was planting needles under Mari's feet and just waiting for her to pop. "Why are you concerned with how I'm feeling though?"

"Because I have a favor to ask from you," She answered, nonchalantly checking her nails as she spoke to her. "You're friends with Hongjoong, right? And clearly, you'll be too busy with your faction's business to even hang out with him at the moment, so I was wondering if I can borrow him from you for a moment."

Jaerin laughed after letting her statement linger in the air for a moment, looking towards the girl as a smile appeared on her face. "I mean, whether you said yes or not, I would have taken him anyways. I just thought it would be polite to ask."

"Calm yourself," Wooyoung muttered to her, grabbing a hold of her wrist when he felt her tense up next to him, breathing through her nostrils like an angry bull.

"My mother is very fond of Hongjoong, I'll have you know. She's always talking about how good of a match he would be for me and honestly? She's not wrong! She wants to invite him over for dinner, give his parents a few gifts, sway him over into finding me more..." She looked Mari up and down before smiling at her. "Appealing than others. And since you aren't going to be busy bothering him any time soon, I thought I would begin pursue him again like I used to. When I didn't distractions."

"You can't... do that." Wooyoung intervened, a confused yet scornful glint in his eyes as he began to connect the dots. "I mean in theory you can, it never works out the way you'll want it to."

Jaerin rolled her eyes, turning her head towards Wooyoung with a sneer. "It'll be a hard journey for sure, trying to make Hongjoong keep his eyes on me rather than Mari over here. But you can always take his place for the week if you believe in morals so much."

"You can't just force people into doing things for you, Jaerin," Mari growled, testing Wooyoung's physical strength as she tried to snatch her wrist away from. Somehow Mari was going to wrap her hands around Jaerin's neck and squeeze every little silvery word out of the girl's mouth. "Especially when those people aren't interested in you."

"Oh please! You can always go find some other boy to play around with!" She complained, her smile turning into a mocking smirk as she pointed towards Wooyoung. "I mean you've got him begging at your feet even! Not only that but Seonghwa, Mingi, and Yunho? Tons of options for someone of such... unique way of doing things."

"I'm going to need you to let go of me," Mari growled between gritted teeth, attempting to pry Wooyoung's hands off her wrist. "I'm going to need you to let go of me right now."

"Absolutely not," Wooyoung responded, his grip on her wrist getting tighter. "I let go of you and all hell breaks loose."

"Good."

Jaerin cackled, covering her mouth with her hands as she watched the two interact. "God! I swear you don't have an off switch, do you? It was a good thing your father put Wooyoung by your side permanently, it's like you were never trained in manners at all! All you know is bark and bite, it's hilarious!"

Wooyoung blinked his eyes a couple of times, her worse registering in his mind before turning towards Mari. "You know I might actually let you go this time. This front row ticket to seeing you knock her out seems really worth it right now." Jaerin flinched when she saw the boy grip on her wrist loosen, her strong and arrogant attitude dropping immediately at the thought of getting attacked by Mari again.

All the girl knew how to do was talk, she just didn't have the strength to back up her words. 

Jaerin cleared her throat as she drew away, putting distance between her and Mari with each step she took. "Like I said! I'll be borrowing Hongjoong for a few days so don't be sad when he comes back head over heels for—"

Mari took one threatening step towards Jaerin and it sent her jumping backward like a frightened cat. "I think this might be your last chance to run away Jaerin. Cause this time my father isn't here to stop me and these cameras sure won't do a damn thing to me." 

The Lee Faction heir visibly shivered at her warning, debating on whether or not she wanted to face the humiliation of being mauled to death by Mari or not. "You're so..." She trailed off, biting her lip in anticipation as she waited to see if Mari would jump her before she could even finish her last words. "You're going to regret this, Seo. I promise you that. I'm going to make you wish you had never even crossed paths with me."

"Oops, I let go," Wooyoung stated, letting go of Mari's wrist and letting her have full freedom of her movement once more. Jaerin immediately took it as a sign to run away, scurrying away from the two as fast as her legs could take her. The boy had to resist the urge to laugh at the girl, a playful smile stretching across his face. "Seriously, why does she even antagonize you if she's the one who would get her ass kicked in a fight?"

"I think she just likes seeing me pissed off," Mari hissed, watching the girl disappear around the corner in a hurry. "The only problem is that she can't take the heat once I'm mad enough."

He nodded in agreement, a moment of silence settling between them before he turned towards her. "So I'm guessing your berserk mode is triggered by Hongjoong then?"

"What?" She asked him, confusing donning her face and replacing the amount of rage that was building up inside of her. "I don't... think I understand?"

"Are you serious?" Wooyoung responded. "Have you not noticed all of the times someone has mentioned Hongjoong negatively and you've nearly exploded? Jaerin has done it twice to my knowledge and I've done it a few times as well. Each time you were literally rocking on thin ice, I thought you were going to murder me when I had said something bad about Hongjoong before. You're so attached to him that the mere mentioning of his name will put you into attack mode."

Mari stood there in silence, trying to comprehend what was coming out of Wooyoung's mouth. Was she... really like that? If she was, she has never noticed her change in demeanor whenever Hongjoong would get mentioned in a conversation or argument. But then again, Mari thought she was always nearly biting people's heads off when she was talking to him. 

Wooyoung took a moment to take in Mari's expression, watching her come to a realization she had never thought of before. "Wow... you really didn't know, did you?"

"I thought I was just being myself? Aren't I always aggressive when I'm talking to people, much less arguing with other people?"

"Well..." He trailed off, trying to put it as nicely as possible. "Yeah... but it's totally different when Hongjoong gets brought up, you know? It's more intense, you go literally insane. I mean that's how you got into a fight with Jaerin back at the manor, is it not? Because she had mentioned Hongjoong to take a jab at you and you... liters lost your shit."

"Oh," Mari said, staring down at the ground. "I never really... noticed."

Wooyoung gave her a mirthless laugh, slinging an arm around her shoulder as he forced her to start walking forward. "I guess that means you really like him, right? I mean I would literally jump in front of a bullet for you, not just because that's my job, and it feels like you would do the same for him and vice versa."

When Mari didn't respond, too immersed in her own thoughts, another weak laugh escaped his mouth. "Yeah. You like him."

"Yeah," Mari finally responded, running her hands through her hair in order to keep her mind preoccupied. "I do like him. I like him... a lot more than I should."

A smile began to spread across Wooyoung's face, bitter and green with envy. "Yeah. That's pretty fucked up, huh?" He went quiet for a moment before stopping in his tracks, bringing them to a sudden halt that nearly sent Mari tumbling to the ground. "You know I was deeply in love with you for like several years right? I spent nearly the majority of my life not just trying to save your life, but get you to like me back just as much as I liked you."

"Wooyoung, what..." Mari began, trying to find the right words to explain herself. "What the... hell is this about?

"I really thought I was finally getting somewhere. That night at that masquerade party I thought I had finally got you right where I wanted. I thought I finally had gotten you to realize how much I liked you and that you felt the same," He confessed. "So how does that bastard of a biker boy get like two months' worth of time with you and your head over heels for him? I'm calling witchcraft, I promise you no normal human being can get you to fall for them so quickly!"

Mari laughed at his statement, rolling her eyes at his playful demeanor. Even when he was standing there and professing his unrequited feelings to her, he still found a way to make it feel like it was just another day of them hanging out with each other. "Honestly, I'd like to know how he did it too. I promise you I had no intention of falling for that bumbling idiot, but I did anyway."

"Yeah, but I used to be your bumbling idiot." Wooyoung pouted. "It's not fair, he's just taking everything I've worked hard to achieve away from me. Hongjoong has just gotta be some glitch in the system."

"Honestly—" Mari agreed before she was cut off, almost unable to get the whole word out of her mouth. It was a quick and fleeting moment, the feeling of lips quickly pressing against Mari's and taking her off guard. She wasn't mentally nor physically prepared him to kiss her out of the blue, lightly brushing his oddly soft lips over hers just long enough to transfer the warmth between the two. It felt like they had barely even touched each other like a feather had lightly tickled her face for just a few seconds before it suddenly disappeared.

"What... what the..." Mari stuttered, trying to regain her composure but failing miserably at every attempt. Her brain just refused to realize what had just happened, her entire mind's inner workings were starting to shut down even. "What the fuck?"

"Now," Wooyoung began when he pulled away from her. The corners of his mouth curved into a blissful smile as he watched Mari short circuit, satisfied with the outcome he had received. "You can tell Hongjoong I'm waving the white flag. I got the first kiss so I think I'm okay with letting you go now.”


	36. Curious Cat

Mari was practically fading in and out of existence, her mind completely flooded with unnecessary thoughts that surfed the waves of her thought process. She simply couldn't think very well at the moment, which was bad. Mari already didn't use her brain as much as those around her but now it was completely shut off. Her body was running on its emergency mode trying to get her through the day without potentially getting herself into any more trouble. 

She couldn't help it though preoccupied with what her brain deemed as more important thoughts. Mari was already trying to track her brain around the fact that San was blatantly ignoring her and Wooyoung just had to add to the mix by dumping his feelings right on top of her head at the same time. She wasn't even mentally prepared for it all to happen, hitting her like a speeding eighteen-wheeler truck. And the mere fact that Wooyoung was walking around like there were flowers under his feet? Pretending as if nothing ever happened? She was so close to losing her mind she could feel herself ready to tip over the edge. 

How oblivious could she have possibly been to Wooyoung feelings towards her? For nearly her entire life no less? She knew that Wooyoung's skull was like shaking an empty can but Mari's must have been even worse for her to be this ignorant.

She just thought he was being friendly because he's friendly with everyone! Sure sometimes certain things that come out of his mouth are incredibly suggestive, though usually incredibly stupid, but that's just how he acts. Practically been engraved in his personality since birth so you can blame her for not taking the hint.

But then there were also some very obvious suggestions of him being fond of Mari: the jealousy towards Hongjoong, the overprotectiveness, the specific way he treated Mari compared to literally everyone else around him. But they have been friends since childhood! It was normal for friends to be like that with each other... right?

"Mari?" Yeosang's voice rang through her ears, the sound hitting the walls of her head like a pinball machine. The Consigliere's son was standing right outside her room, his head peering through the small crack in the door. The boy's usually ice piercing gaze was shrouded in worry as Mari urged him in, confused by his sudden presence. "You know you should really fire Wooyoung, he may be a very competent soldier on the field but he sucks at guarding. He's literally slouched against the wall sleeping on the job."

Wooyoung was still her "bodyguard" as well thanks to the Kim Faction's scare. She thought the two of them standing and following each other around would be awkward after the school incident, but it seemed like the feeling was one-sided. "I can't really... do that," Mari responded as Yeosang closed the door behind him, giving her a rather skeptical look. "You know... my dad would kinda lose his shit. Not that he hasn't already lost his mind already but you know, he would lose it for even longer. Did that actually make any sense? Now that I say it out loud it doesn't—"

"You're rambling," Yeosang pointed out, taking a seat on her bed to sit near her. That was the second time now, she's been told she's shooting off at the mouth. When did this decide to start happening? She could have sworn this wasn't a normal habit of hers.

Yeosang seemed to pick up on the shift as well, resting his head on his hand as he looked at her with his unblinking stare. He looked too much like a statue for his own good, was he even breathing at this point. "Mari are you... okay? You haven't been yourself lately."

"You can tell?" She fell back into her bed's pillow with a huff, a frustrated pout playing across her lips. "I thought I was doing a rather good job of hiding it."

"You have been fidgeting around Wooyoung for the last two days, haven't spoken to San in a week, earned yourself a rambling habit," Yeosang listed off, counting each flaw in Mari on his fingers. "And you didn't pay attention to a word the Underboss has said when he addressed the entire faction today. I know you know most of the information he had given out but you should have at least pretend to pay attention to him."

Mari narrowed her eyes at the boy, sitting up against her pillows to attempt to match his intense stare. "Why the hell are you so perspective of me?"

"I'm your future Consigliere, I have to pay attention to these things," He reminded her, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly. "But seriously, what's going on? Usually, you're in a fiery, hyped up, nearly bouncing off of the walls' mood. I don't like seeing you apprehensive and uneasy, it's scary."

Yeosang sure knew how to push her buttons because he was getting a little too comfortable with her. "I'm a human being, Yeosang. That's normal for me to feel this way sometimes. Unfortunately, I am not a scary and old Greek statue like you are and actually display my feelings by wearing my heart on my sleeve."

"Stop avoiding the question," Yeosang quickly scolded, a hint of annoyance gleaming in his eyes. 

Mari huffed once more, crossing her arms like a child ready to throw a tantrum. "Listen Yeosang, I know you're just tryna be helpful and listen to me and everything but..." She began, throwing out whatever excuse she could come up with on the fly. Though his eyes were carving holes straight through her head, his soft smile burning away her will to even continue on with her statement. Curse Kang Yeosang, no one told him to be good at getting the truth out of people. "It's San and Wooyoung."

"I guessed so," He shrugged, but urged her to continue on anyway.

"Things have just been... very weird lately. Specifically with San. Recently he spilled the fact that he knew that the boss was my father involuntarily but I ended up running away from him before we could really get into a conversation about it," Mari confessed, her shoulder slumping at the memory. "I ended up being preoccupied with other things before I could ever even think about confronting him about it all, then when I was ready to talk to him about it all he started... ignoring me."

"Out of the blue?" Yeosang quickly asked before Mari could change the subject again

"Completely out of the blue! The last time he had ignored me was when I was trying to prove Jongho's innocence. This time I don't even know what I did, and I can't even ask him because every time we make eye contact he starts making a mad dash for any exit in sight!" Mari complained, on the genuine very often throwing a temper tantrum. The whole situation with San was just so stupid in all actuality. If she just didn't avoid him for so long, if she didn't drop everything in that one moment and ran away, this wouldn't have been happening.

But if she didn't end up leaving, Mingi probably would have never caught Mari in time before Hongjoong's father showed up. Who knows what type of chaos would ensue when the sick son and the bastard father were alone and forced to interact with each other?

"I'm this close," Mari spoke, softly pulling on her hair at the thought. "I'm this close to just buying handcuffs so that the next time I see San I can just lock him onto me so he can't run away. I just want this whole situation to be over with so I can go back to having a somewhat normal life again."

Yeosang's face twisted in slight disapproval of her suggestion but chose not to address the statement. "Well, have you perhaps thought that San himself isn't ready to have that conversation? I mean, you being related to the boss was kept as a secret for how long? Several years, right? And anyone who had witnessed any sort of familial bond between the two of you was either killed or forced to keep their mouth zipped close so that they wouldn't be killed."

"But he was the one," She argued, "who brought it up in the first place!"

"Did he willingly bring it up or was it just something that was said in the heat of the moment?" Yeosang questioned, quickly debunking Mari's argument. The girl opened her mouth to try and say anything to bring the conversation back into her favor but there was nothing she could. "We're human, Mari. Just like you said. We don't always make conscious decisions for ourselves, you don't always make conscious decisions for yourself. And from the look of your reaction, this was one of those times."

San didn't look like he wanted to throw out all the information he knew. In fact, it looked like he was going to try and keep a secret for as long as he could, leaving Mari and Wooyoung in a sense of false security. She just made him frustrated, constantly brushing off his urge to be there for her as a friend no more how many times he had iterated its importance to her. "Ah fuck."

"Looks like someone is being rather selfish and neglectful of their friends," Yeosang nagged, a knowing smirk growing on his face as Mari frowned at him.

"I'm not being selfish! I'm just... kinda ignorant," She corrected him, her frown getting bigger the more she thought about it. "But that still doesn't give him the excuse to run away from me the way he is! I can acknowledge the fact that I was thinking of myself only, but San is in the wrong too!"

"Oh, absolutely," Yeosang agreed, "What San is doing is the pettiest thing I've ever seen a person do. It's childish, to say the least, and he's in the wrong for what he's doing too. But giving you the satisfaction of having someone agree that what he's doing is wrong first would have completely overshadowed the fact that you're also being rather inconsiderate of his feelings as well. We're teenagers still, you both are obviously gonna screw up sometimes. However, you have a habit of self gratitude."

"Can you stop reading into me so damn hard?" Mari complained, glaring sharply at the pleasantly pleased boy. "You're here for moral support and advice only."

Yeosang smiled at her, unbothered by her attempts to shove him off of her bed. "I could but... it's a lot more fun to talk to you this way. You can't even lie to me, I know all your telltale signs. You're practically helpless trying to hide anything from me."

"Is this why Jongho was so afraid of you when he had first arrived at the faction?" She asked him, tilting her head at the thought. Mari could remember it like it was yesterday, Jongho deathly frightened by the mere sound of Yeosang's voice. Yeosang was rather soft spoken as well in order to make up for his harsh honesty, so it was odd, to say the least. "What did you even do to him? Read into him so hard that you made him cry?"

The Consigliere's son went quiet for a moment, reminiscing on past events in order to give her an accurate answer. "Well, while I am not as skilled with weaponry as Wooyoung or San or even you for that matter, I can hold my own with a pistol in hand very well. Not skipping lessons in self defense does help make me look like a more threat to others outside of my personal circle."

"You? Held a gun?" Mari gasped, taken aback by this sudden bomb of information. "God I thought the Consigliere had made you this pure little virgin boy who has never gotten his hands dirty. What other little sins have you committed?"

"Be careful with your words before you end up in a ditch on the side of the road." Yeosang threatened his eyebrow twitching in annoyance. "Now let's steer back on topic here, shall we? We've dealt with your problem with San but I'm honestly more interested in what happened with Wooyoung."

Mari knew that punching a statue would probably fracture her hand, but Yeosang's face looked like the perfect punching bag at the moment. She can't even lie to the boy, he just told her she had no possible way to do that! "God, you really are the devil."

"So that means something truly did happen between the two of you again?" Yeosang eyes lit up like the stars, hungry for as much information as he could physically stomach. He liked being in Mari's business a lot more than she had realized beforehand, or maybe this was apart of his personality that she had just unlocked? Either way, she didn't like how nosy he was. "You know, the two of you are always in a fight or some reason. Is that a thing that friends do all the time? Just fight each other for no apparent reason?"

"It wasn't a fight," She clarified, flicking his forehead in retaliation. "Nothing really... nothing really happened, nothing interesting for you to know at least. I promise. Either way that's none of your business anyways."

"It is my business because I'm your—"

"—Future Consigliere, yes, Yeosang, I know." She interrupted, rolling her eyes at his persistence. "However you are incredibly nosy for no reason. I don't have to tell you everything just because you're going to be my right hand man one day. My own father keeps secrets from not just me but his Consigliere and Underboss as well. I am not obligated to spill every deep dark secret I have."

He shrugged, a slight pout donning his lips at her sudden refusal. "That's fine, I guess. You can keep your secrets," Yeosang commented, sliding off of her bed like a sulking child and walking towards the door. "I'll just go ask Wooyoung instead. He's more willing to tell me about things than you are anyways. He can't keep his mouth shut, you know how much a loudmouth he is."

"Kang Yeosang!" Mari screamed at the boy as he broke out into a full sprint, rushing towards the door to get fo Wooyoung first. He was right outside it wouldn't take long for him to ask the question once he was in sight. The girl scrambled off of her bed to try and grab a hold of his shirt collar, harshly pulling him back as he held the doorknob in his grasp. There was a playful smile on his face, a burst of light laughter willingly escaping his mouth for the first time since Mari could remember.

Actually, had Mari ever heard Yeosang laugh before? Like a genuine sound of enjoyment coming from straight from his stomach and not strained from his throat? If she had, it definitely didn't sound like this.

"What's gotten into you?" She questioned him, narrowing her eyes at the boy. He certainly looked like the normal Kang Yeosang: the natural stone cold eyes, the compass tattoo on his neck, the birthmark next to his eye, his overall demeanor. Mari had just never quite seen the Consigliere's son act... childish. "Are you sure you're actually Yeosang? You've got to be some sort of spy doppelgänger... maybe even a clone? Yeosang would never act like this."

The smile on his face twitched as he swatted Mari's hand off of him, glaring at her for such a statement. There he was, the normal Kang Yeosang. Seeing him all gleeful and childish was a scary scene... maybe she and Wooyoung were rubbing off on him a little too much. "I can have fun when I want, you know? I'm not a machine."

Mari was about to retaliate to his statement by doing her usual spill about him being a statue when there was a soft but hurried knocking on her door. It was such a small noise that the girl didn't even notice it at first before it became aggressively louder and hastier the longer she didn't answer. Wasn't Wooyoung supposed to be guarding the door to her room? She knew when Yeosang had come in he was slouched against the wall sleeping but surely he should be awake now. 

"I'm telling you," Yeosang spoke. "The least you can do is strip him of his guard position and send him to do work like the rest of the faction." Mari ignored him, taking a few long strides towards her door and opening it up just slightly to see who was on the other side. Whoever it was, at least they were considerate enough to knock first instead of barging straight inside in these trying times.

Recognition donned her face as Mari opened the door a little wider. Yeosang peered from behind Mari to get a better look at who was at the doorway as she spoke, "San?"

Once again, the boy seemed like he was in a rush. San looked like he had run halfway across the manor to get to her room, probably lost on where exactly he was supposed to go since he couldn't really ask anyone for directions. "Mari," He spoke, taking a deep breath before he said any more. "We need to talk."

Mari turned towards Yeosang, exchanging conflicted expressions with the Consigliere's son. This was what she had been asking for right? A moment to finally explain herself and the petty little lie she had let the boy live? And he was asking for her to talk to him, which meant he was ready to have that conversation. "You're... okay with talking about it now? I know we kept avoiding each other for the most part but I'm not gonna force you to stomach all—"

"No," He immediately interrupted, glancing side to side to see if anyone was watching him. Wooyoung seemed to be awaking upon hearing San voice, stretching his arms out to relieve himself of the strain on his muscles and giving San a groggy and confused look. How long had that boy been sleeping for actually? "That's not the kind of talk I meant. We need to talk about it at some point, yeah, but that's not as important right now."

"Is there something wrong, San?" Yeosang inquired, joining Mari at the doorway. He took one long and hard look at San, trying to silently read him like an open book in order to get ahead on the conversation. But after a few moments, he simply gave him a puzzled look and continued," Did something happen, why did you run all the way here?" Yeosang seemed just as lost as Mari was.

He urged them inside of Mari's room, even grabbing Wooyoung by the arm and closing the door behind him. The boy weakly protested, not quite understanding the urgency but neither did they. "It's about Jaerin," San told them, glancing back at the door due to pure paranoia. "There's something... not quite adding up about her anymore, I've felt this way ever since I saw her for the first time. And now I think I know why."


	37. Alone Together

So they don't have enough proof to convict Jaerin of betraying the Seo Faction. 

San had explained it all to them, why he was avoiding Mari and what he had been doing the entire time. Apparently, he was hot on Jaerin's tail, picking up on her odd habits and devilish attitude to try to uncover what she was hiding behind her back. He had to avoid Mari in order to do so, not wanting to link her to San's investigations and make her guilty by association. If Jaerin found out she was being clued in on what was going on, the pathological liar would find a way to accuse them of something heinous enough to put them both out of commission.

He had never been too fond of Jaerin's presence, finding something... off-putting about her and it wasn't shared with the rest of the Lee Faction. San just couldn't exactly place his finger on what exactly made her different from those around her, different from her own family. Despite her soft features and sickly sweet smile every time she batted her eyes at authority, it never felt like Jaerin was approaching anyone with good intentions. So he had steered clear of her, minding his own business and not wanting to get any more involved with the higher-ups of the faction than he already was.

That was until he overheard a conversation Jaerin was having. It was after the alliance between the Seo and Lee Faction had been officially formed, after the huge catfight between the two that Mari had caused in public. The Underboss was calling for each member of the faction that had witnessed the scene and forcefully sworn them to secrecy and San had snuck away just before anyone could have noticed he was gone. She was in a room by herself, pacing around impatiently as she spoke to someone on the other side of her phone.

San could only hear bits and pieces of the conversation, his mind already preoccupied with the act of defiance Mari had displayed earlier that day. He just knew she was furious, her body trembling in pure resentment for the events that had transpired. Jaerin was physically stopping herself from nearly screaming her vocal cords out of her throat. Her hands were clenched in vice grip tight fists as she whispered something soft yet threatening into her phone speaker before ending the call abruptly. It was eerily quiet after that before the smashing of glass against the hard floor echoed throughout the room, followed by a high pitched shriek of pure wrath. 

The Underboss had found San before he could question the events before him, immediately switching gears to put his current worries at the top of his list of importance. He had tried to leave Jaerin alone after that, not wanting to dig into the situation any more just in case he was going to be led to his ultimate doom. But the longer San had left the thoughts unattended to, the more he began to think and wonder. 

He ended up noticing small little things no one else seemed to be bothered by as well: random phone calls Jaerin would leave the room to answer, leaving the manor (to his knowledge) to meet up with what she would call friends from school, even her overall demeanor became more confident and at ease than she had originally been when she had first arrived at the Seo Manor. There were countless other details no one else but him had noticed as well, that's how San knew something wasn't right.

So one could only imagine the moment of realization when the Underboss had finally addressed the whole faction of their current situation, his brain connecting the dots between Jaerin's actions and the sudden warning of a possible Kim Faction invasion. The Seo Faction wasn't safe as long as Lee Jaerin was standing inside of it and they needed to get rid of her as fast as they possibly could. 

But the Underboss and Consigliere weren't just going to believe four teenagers wholeheartedly. Mari was already known for disdain towards Jaerin, and Wooyoung and San were her close friends who obviously were going to take her side in situations like these. Yeosang was the son of the Consigliere as well, and the Consigliere expected his son to be unbiased and neutral when it came to Mari and her gang of merry men. They already knew her father wasn't going to believe them either, hung up on keeping the alliance between the Seo and Lee Faction by appeasing them to them as much as he could.

There were countless things the Lee Faction had to offer the Seo Faction: more soldiers for an impending attack, buildings masked as private organizations they could use, and countless amounts of money to supply them with. All these resources the Lee Faction had were usually completely and utterly unattainable because of the Lee Faction's history of neutrality. Mari's father wanted to keep these resources as long as he possibly could.

So they needed evidence. Not little rumors, not random hunches. They needed solid evidence of Jaerin's betrayal to the Seo Faction, they just didn't know exactly where to get this evidence from.

"You okay, princess?" Hongjoong's voice rang through Mari's ears as he sat down next to her. The two were at Mingi's house, sitting on the patio sofa in his backyard near the pool once again. Mari had originally planned on heading straight home after the school day had ended, her eagerness to finally rid Jaerin from her daily life needing to be quenched. But Hongjoong seemed to have other plans for her, snatching up Mari right from under Wooyoung's grasps and taking her along for the ride on his motorcycle without second questions. 

She didn't know exactly how Wooyoung was going to get out of this situation, as showing up at the Seo Manor without her end in his demise or at least a horrible scolding. Mari just hoped he decided to stall time and wait for her to come back instead of facing her father's wrath on his own. She had more important things to worry about than him being punished.

Hongjoong's eyes bored into her head, waiting patiently for an answer that she couldn't quite make up. "You've been... quiet since you arrived. Usually, you've got something to talk about but you've just... not really spoken to me since we stepped into the house." 

Mari glanced up towards him, the dim pool lights illuminating their faces as the evening skies began to roll in. His scarlet red hair was vibrantly popping against the soft red and orange hue of the skies, making Hongjoong stick out like a sore thumb compared to everything around him. Even so, his mere presence was like eye candy to her. "Yeah I'm fine, I've just..." She began, unable to shake the thought of Wooyoung from her mind after staring at him for so long. "I've got a lot on my mind."

Hongjoong seemed worried, not completely stomaching her answer as he turned towards her. "You've always got a lot on your mind, though, that doesn't help me at all." He was right, Mari did a lot of thinking whenever she was around him. Every time Hongjoong came around she always had something on her mind, the gears in her rather small brain doing their best to spin and turn to process all the information she was often force fed. 

She felt bad, they never really just did anything because they wanted to. It was always in an attempt to escape the reality they had to endure.

"Sorry," Mari chuckled, a bitter half smile stretching across her face. "A lot goes on in my life and I'm just... forced to think sometimes. Chaos doesn't like to settle every time I'm ready to go back to normal."

"I promise you, we are one in the same princess," Hongjoong stated, gesturing to the both of them. "Recently it feels like there is no air breathe anymore, I feel like I'm gonna suffocate if I stand still for any longer than a minute in my house." He shuddered at the mentioning his home life, clearly not very fond of the thought of it. Mari wouldn't be either with the type of parents he was forced to live with. "You know... sometimes I think I'm just gonna leave."

Mari gave him a once-over, confused by the words he suddenly dropped out of his mouth. "What do you mean by leave?"

"You know," Hongjoong urged, lifting up his shoulders for a quick half shrug. He held out his hands in front of him, reaching out towards the setting sun as if it was tempting him to come catch it. "One day I just pack my bags, grab my keys, and drive off as long and far away from my parents as I can possibly get. Finally have a taste of true freedom that's always just been a little too far for me to get a hold of."

"It seems like you've been yearning for this a lot longer than it seems," Mari commented, a smug smile spreading across her face. 

Though it immediately softened when Hongjoong turned to face her, his eyes sparkling with pure bliss and a bright smile playing on his lips as he spoke to her. "Yeah, I have. Literally dreamed of running away in secondary school but I just never took the chance to do so. But now?" He stated, "It's a lot more tempting than I could have ever dreamed of it being. I can almost taste it, the feeling of independence and freedom I've only been able to see through a window." 

Hongjoong was definitely more starry eyed than Mari had originally thought when she first met him. Yet despite that, his head in the clouds' personality was rather endearing to watch unfurl as he grew exceedingly more comfortable around her. "So that's the plan? Graduate and run away once you get the chance?"

He nodded his head, running his hands through his fiery red hair for a second before looking at her. "I would like it to happen right now if I could. But I'd just be missing too much if I did."

"Well you're not wrong there," She agreed. "Seonghwa seems like the type to nag, he'd probably go ballistic at the mere thought of you running with no intention of never returning. Same goes for Yunho and Mingi, but minus the nagging part. Yunho looks like he'd break down into tears if you suddenly disappeared from his life. And Mingi—"

"That's not... exactly what I'm talking about," He interrupted. "I mean don't get me wrong, you're absolutely right about Seonghwa and Yunho. But Mingi would probably scream with pure joy at the thought of me leaving since I made a promise to him if I ever did run away he can grab whatever he wants from my room and I'll never ask for it back, but I wasn't really talking about them. I was kinda... talking about... you?"

"You wouldn't be missing a damn thing, I promise," She snorted. "My life is full of chaos, Hongjoong. Honestly, I think you'd be a lot better off than listening to me ramble about what goes on in the hellhole I call home."

He laughed at her response as he crossed his arms, looking up towards the growing dark skies as the sunset slowly came to its end. "Yeah, you're right. Because I'd take you with me."

Mari choked on her own spit, pounding her fist against her chest as a result. "I'm sorry... what?" She said in between coughs, rising off the patio sofa to stare at him. "Take me with you? Not that it's not a cool offer and everything, but I wouldn't be able to. I can't do that whether I want to or not. My father is already on the verge of becoming a helicopter parent and Wooyoung! He'd follow me to the ends of the Earth. I wouldn't want to force him to do that. Don't even get me started on Jaerin of all people—" 

"Jaerin? Lee Jaerin? Her?" He questioned, his face contorting into a look of disgust at the thought of the girl. Mari thought about it for a moment, unsure of whether or not she wanted to answer his question. Though she hesitantly nodded her head, her face twisting with confusion at Hongjoong's reaction. "What does Jaerin have to do with anything?"

"Jaerin's always talking about how much I don't know about you," Mari explained. "And how she's closer to you than I am and how much her parents like you and all. She'd literally turn into a demon if I ran anywhere out of her grasp with you. Frankly, I don't want to deal with that when she's already caused so much trouble for me as is."

Hongjoong groaned, his eyebrow twitching in annoyance. "God... she doesn't know how to leave people alone, does she?"

"Hell no," Mari responded, calling back to all the times Jaerin decided to shove herself into her life and cause problems. The girl wished she could just spill every single time the Lee Faction heir had started a fight between the two of them, but that would lead to her saying some extremely classified information. "She came up to me like a day or two ago trying to borrow you from me like you were some sort of object that can be passed around. Apparently, her mom is super interested in you?"

His frustrated expression immediately dulled, sucking in air through his teeth at her statement. "Ah... not this again."

"Again?" Mari repeated. "What's happening again?"

Hongjoong stood up from his seat on the patio sofa, his hands deep with his pockets as he walked up to her. "I'm going to assume Jaerin decided to blab on about how her mom is trying to set us up together as subtle as she possibly can. She's been doing this for a few years now before I even met you."

Mari's hands fell to her side, tilting her head in confusion. She wasn't sure about what he meant, but it had already been established early on that Mari had no sense of understanding in her when she really needed to be. "But... why? What is the point in doing that if you're clearly not interested in her?"

"Her dad and my dad are close business partners. Well not business partners but her family being a fairly large stockholder for one of my dad's business or whatever," He explained, shrugging his shoulders. "Apparently her mother is stuck in this mentality that if we get together it'll strengthen the bond between the two families or whatever. Plus Jaerin is genuinely interested in me and that woman will do anything just to make her daughter happy."

"There's no way you just didn't tell them no, right? She asked, giving him an intense stare as she hesitated to respond to her question. "Wow... you're a rebellious teenager and you can't even tell them no? That's so weak Hongjoong."

"I tried to, I really did!" Hongjoong complaining, rubbing his arms as goosebumps began to form to the thought of the older woman. "But she's a terrifying person and persistent. I've told Jaerin no multiple times, don't get me wrong. But her mother just refuses to take any other answers, going as far as to plan things behind my back with my mother and trick me into following through with them. My only option when dealing with Jaerin and her mother is to smile and nod like nothing is happening."

Mari rolled her eyes at the thought of the two women, they truly did uphold the "like mother like daughter" agenda. She had never seen the girl's mother but she could only assume that Jaerin was nearly identical to her from what Hongjoong described. But didn't San say that Jaerin radiated s different type of energy compared to everyone in her faction? "That's why she's so determined to make me stay away from you? So that she can force you to be with her?"

"That's what it sounds like." He agreed. Though a smile began to form on his lips as he looked at Mari, amusement gleaming in his eyes as he reached out to play with a strand of her hair. "Why are you so worried about that though, princess? You afraid that Jaerin might just swoop me off my feet one day when you're not looking?"

"Stop it," She hissed, swatting his hand away as he laughed at her. "And no, I'm not worried about anything. I'm completely normal. Jaerin has just been very... annoying lately to say the least. While not reassuring to know that her mother is nearly the exact same as her, it's good to know where her personality comes from. I just hope they share the same intentions..."

Hongjoong leaned towards Mari, forcing her to shuffle away from him in order to put a distance between the two of them. "Are you sure about that?" He questioned her, filling up the gap between them. "No hint of jealousy anywhere? Really?"

"Of..." Mari stuttered, practically digging her heels into the ground as she leaned away from him. She was stuck on the edge of the pool now, if she tried to move any further she'd be sent diving straight into the icy cold water. "Of course, I'm not? Why would I ever be jealous of Jaerin? I could kick her ass if I really wanted to. Plus I trust you not be swayed by her lame attempts anyways."

"You trust me?" He repeated, though more like trying to get confirmation over the idea of trust between the two of them. Hongjoong smiled at the thought, invading the space she had placed between to get in closer proximity to brushing a strand of the girl's hair away from her face. "You trust me, Mari?"

Mari didn't even realize she was holding her breath, frozen in place, and unable to form any words whether she wanted to answer his question or not. Her brain was running a marathon, going into low battery mode, and shutting down all the functioning parts of her brain. The only thing that seemed to stay afloat in the chaos of her mind was the thought of Wooyoung and his confession. She couldn't stop thinking about it, why couldn't she stop thinking about it? "I...uh... I... do?"

His smile grew even larger at her answer, silently letting out a sigh of relief as he placed his hands on her shoulders. "Good," Hongjoong told her. "Now keep it that way." Mari was going to ask what he meant, unable to keep eye contact with him anymore until she felt him push her. 

It was a light nudge off of the edge of where she was standing but created a rather huge splash as she plummeted into the pool water below her. Mari panicked when the icy cold liquid touched her skin, the air in her lungs suddenly forcing itself to a halt as she tried to comprehend what was happening. The water distorted the sound of laughter on the surface, echoing through the waters and trapping itself below the surface. Mari scrambled to bring her head up above the water, gasping for air as she clung onto the edge of the pool for support. "What the hell was that for?"

Hongjoong couldn't hear her over his loud and giddy laughter, finding amusement in Mari's reaction. She gritted her teeth together in frustration, struggling to lift herself out of the pool so that she could attack him. "You should have seen the look on your face!" He exclaimed, stumbling around and losing his balance as he laughed. "It was so funny!"

"No, it's not!" She yelled back, pushing her drenched hair out of her face so that she could see him better. "That was so mean you asshole!" He didn't seem to be paying any attention to her and Mari took that as a sign to take her swift revenge. She slid the snake ring off of her finger and slid it across the ground so she wouldn't lose it in the pool before grabbing a hold of Hongjoong's leg when he stumbled her way. He yelled a string of curses when she pushed herself off the wall of the pool, dragging him down into the water with her.

Mari took hold of the pool's edge as quickly as she could, genuinely not having much experience in swimming and not wanting to risk the threat of drowning in Mingi's backyard. Hongjoong came up after her, breaking the water's surface and shaking out his hair as if he was a wet dog. "Okay I get it," He commented as he slicked back his hair. "I deserved that, huh?"


	38. Walk Without the Stars

Chaeyeon's heels clicked with every step she took down the marble hallway, the sound echoing throughout the nearly empty halls. If anyone was still around to hear her approaching they knew it was time to escape while they could. The Caporeigme was in a good mood today, she felt better than good even. She felt fantastic, every inch of her body powered by a jolt of energy and glee to give herself more of a pep in her step. 

She hadn't felt this energetic in a few months, her mood constantly in the depths of hell thanks to the unfortunate scolding and work she was placed under by the Godfather and the Underboss. However, things have been looking up for her in the past two weeks, bringing her this newfound motivation to go beyond and succeed in every aspect of her work she was given. Chaeyeon may have suffered a loss in the process, but she had a good feeling about this time. That everything was going to change for the better soon enough.

"Ms. Jung!" A shrill voice called out. The woman stopped in her tracks, her heels skidding across the marble floor and creating ear piercing screeching noise. 

Chaeyeon crossed her arms in annoyance, not wanting to be bothered when she was in such a gleeful mood but gave the person the time of day either way. A woman appeared in her sights when she turned around, practically holding her breath now that she was face to face with the Caporegime. "You called?" She asked her, her silvery words falling off her tongue with ease. The woman tensed up at the sound of Chaeyeon's voice, barely being able to speak over a whisper thanks to the nervousness that pushed its way into the forefront of her actions.

The woman blinked her eyes a few times, trying to snap herself back into reality to address the situation as professionally as she possibly could. "I've... I've been sent by Bae Jinyoung," She explained, fumbling around as she pulled out a clasp envelope from a bag she had slung around her body. "According to him, it's the information you had asked for a few weeks back."

"He's done!" Chaeyeon exclaimed, snatching the envelope out of the woman's hands with hungry eyes. She quickly scanned over the envelope once before going over again slowly and more carefully, breathing in its fresh paper print smell like it was a relic lost in time. On the top right corner of the envelope was a small handwritten note that was addressed to her, in the handwriting of none other than Bae Jinyoung himself.

Careful, the man had written, all the information you could ever ask for is in this envelope. Treat it like fine china, or I'll have Jaebum put your head on a silver platter for me. Signed, Bae Jinyoung.

She snorted at his note, rolling her eyes as she dropped her hands to the side. "Sly bastard. It took him long enough anyways." Chaeyeon an annoyed smile donning her face as she looked up from the envelope to the woman that still accompanied her. She seemed unsure of what to do next, attempting to quickly think of a way to excuse herself from the presence of the Caporegime. "If you don't mind me asking," She began, catching the woman off guard. "Where are you heading next?"

"Ah, I work under the Caporegime of the Choi family but was stationed with Bae Jinyoung to help with his most recent project." She explained, her eyes glancing between the envelope in Chaeyeon's hands and the woman herself. "I am returning back to the Choi's in order to receive further information on how to proceed with this project. Is there something... wrong?"

"No, in fact, everything is going rather well. I just have a small favor to ask of you regarding a message I'd like to send back to Jinyoung as thanks," She clarified, her fox-like smile on full display as she spoke. The woman seemed skeptical, not knowing whether or not she wanted to fully trust Chaeyeon or not. She didn't exactly have the best reputation among members of the Kim Faction. It wasn't anything defaming in her eyes, she was simply known to be rather cunning with her silver tongue and honey sweet words. 

After a few moments of thought, the woman nodded. "Of course, Ms. Jung. What would you like me to relay to him?"

"Please tell him I said thank you for finding and bringing this information to me," She told her, her face contorting into a look of patience and irritation as she held the envelope in her hands. Chaeyeon had to physically will herself not to hold onto the envelope with a tight grip, crumbling the freshly printed paper inside. "But the next time he decides to take forever and a decade it'll be his head on a silver platter, and I'll cut it off myself."

The threat seemed to take the woman to the core, nodding her head vigorously and bolting down the hallway in the most formal manner she could probably do. Chaeyeon watched her go, a satisfied smile on her face as the woman disappeared around the corner. She turned back around to walk down the hallway towards the elevator, her smile growing larger as she held up the clasp folder in her hands. "Oh, Bae Jinyoung," she mumbled, "I wonder what you've gotten for me this time." 

There were several detours she had to take in her plans while waiting for Jinyoung to send the envelope to her. It was a crucial piece of her project and she couldn't exactly put it into full force without the information she has asked him to retrieve for her. He must have even struggling to even find any scraps to send her way until recently thanks to the leech they had on their side.

She had met their sudden ally at the night club The Wonderland, a bustling and popular area for young adults and the likes to unwind and forget about reality. They went by the name of Wyvern, masking their true identity under an alias to keep themselves safe. The Underboss had accompanied Chaeyeon on her quest for knowledge for his own means, though involuntarily providing her with back up just in case they were forced into an unfortunate predicament. 

Upon meeting Wyvern, the Underboss was immediately skeptical of her intentions. Not only was Wyvern a girl a little too young to be at a nightclub of this caliber, but her attitude was a little too confident for his liking. The way she spoke with the bitterness and vengeance deeply rooted in her soul and the relaxed and confident movements she made every time she addressed the two Kim Faction members made him untrusting of her. Though Chaeyeon was soaking up everything the girl had to say, even encouraging her to spill every little detail she could. 

Whether Wyvern was trustworthy or not, she had a massive amount of information that the Kim Faction couldn't get their hands on for years. She was going to squeeze every little bit of information she could out of her and then throw her to the dogs when she was finished. And even if Chaeyeon didn't, the Underboss would have handled her either way. There was an entire team of men behind him that would do whatever he asked without hesitation, even if that meant doxxing Wyvern and then proceeding to rid her of last breath.

"She's a child who believes she has the power to control those around her by giving them what they want. She believes that she is the hunter after the pack of wolves," The Underboss had told Chaeyeon. "So I wonder what will happen when those wolves bare their teeth and attack just when she thought she was safe?"

Chaeyeon walked out of the elevator, practically skipping down the dark wood hall towards the Godfather's office. The man on the throne wasn't in today, busy pampering his wife with whatever the woman had asked of him this time. He left the young Underboss in charge in his steed, which meant that today the Underboss was able to call whatever shot he pleaded while the Godfather was. Bae Jinyoung had perfect timing now that she thought about, giving her the chance to put whatever she desired into full throttle without having to wait for the approval of the Godfather.

She didn't even bother knocking on the door, pushing the double doors open to make her grand entrance into the room. The room was dimly lit as always, creating a calm yet serious atmosphere that paralyzed every low ranking member of the Kim Faction when they walked inside. Chaeyeon's eyes scanned the room for the Underboss, finding him seated on the sofa in the middle of the room instead of the revolving chair at the Godfather's desk. "Jaebum."

He was leaned up against the sofa's cushions, a very familiar envelope in his hands. It seemed to carry a lot less weight than Chaeyeon's envelope did though, as he spun the envelope on his fingers with ease as if it was some sort of ball. "Jung Chaeyeon," The Underboss replied, looking through his jet black bangs to meet her gaze. After a few moments of silence, a chuckle escaped his mouth, followed by a confident and pleased smirk. "Blackout?" He questioned her, sitting upright in his seat and holding the envelope up for her to see better.

She grinned, the adrenaline beginning to pump throughout her entire body as she held up the clasp envelope in her hands. They were near the end now and everything was falling into place exactly where they wanted it to be. "Blackout."


	39. End of the Beginning

"Come on, come on!" Mari hissed, rushing San through the door to her room. As soon as he slipped inside she closed the door behind them, pausing a few moments to listen for anyone who might have been trying to follow him. After a few moments of silence, she let out a relieved sigh before turning towards everyone in the room. "Alright, are we all here and accounted for?"

Wooyoung sat on Mari's bed with his legs spread out to leave no room for anyone else, giving the girl a thumbs up in reply to her question. Yeosang stood next to the bed, an annoyed and frustrated glare burning holes into the side of his head for being so inconsiderate of everyone else in the room. Jongho was in the room sitting politely on the floor as well. He seemed to be the most confused out of everyone inside, which was fair enough since they had grabbed the boy by the shirt collar and dragged him into Mari's room without taking any questions.

"Yeah, this is everyone," San replied after counting each person in the room. These were the only people Mari could trust with information about Jaerin, everyone else would either be a suspect aiding the Lee Faction girl in her betrayal or simply wouldn't believe the four teens about their accusation. "There weren't that many of us to begin with anyway."

"Question!" Jongho exclaimed, shooting his hand up in the air as if he was in class. The others turned their heads towards him curiously as he stood up off of the ground. "I'm supposed to be going on a mission today with members of the Seo and Lee Faction to scout out the area for any intruders. Is this going to take long cause I don't wanna make anyone mad because of my absence."

"No promises," Wooyoung shrugged. "This is probably more important than scouting out for intruders anyways. The real enemy is within our ranks already."

Jongho turned to the boy with a puzzled expression, completely out of the loop on what was going on. He opened his mouth to ask another question but Wooyoung simply reached down to cover his mouth with his hands. "Shh, just listen and you'll start to understand okay? We don't have time to explain the whole situation over again." The boy nodded in response, his muffled answer quickly overshadowed by Yeosang who stood up to his rather small but full height.

"I've done a bit of searching in my own time," He told them. "Looking into Jaerin's background as well as the Lee Faction's background to see if their neutrality had been a hoax and if Jaerin had previous interactions with the Kim Faction before meeting the Seo Faction. Unfortunately, the history of neutrality stands strong and to the knowledge I could gather from researching and questioning the soldiers in the Lee Faction, she wasn't very involved in this part of her life for a very long time."

Jongho's look of pure bewildering didn't go overlooked, his brain slowly beginning to string together pieces of the puzzle to understand what was going on. "You're saying she wasn't involved with any of the Lee Faction's business with other factions, at all?" San asked.

Yeosang nodded, crossing his arms as he leaned up against the frame of Mari's bed. Both San and Wooyoung gave the Consigliere's son a skeptical expression as he continued on. "The soldiers I asked said that she was more focused on pleasing her personal life than taking care of the faction that would be left in her hands. Her parents sent her to the Seo Faction to pick up Jongho in their place in order to forcefully involve her in the concerns of her faction. That was the first time she had ever interacted with anything having to do with the Lee Faction, Seo Faction, and Kim Faction combined."

A sigh escaped Mari's mouth as she spoke up. "I can... believe that honestly. When I was with Hongjoong," Wooyoung's head immediately snapped to attention, staring directly into the side of Mari's head as she spoke. She exchanged glances with the boy, silently begging him not to start any sort of fight before she cleared her throat before speaking again. Yeosang seemed to pick up on the exchange between the two, willing himself not to laugh despite the clear amused smile on his face.

"Like I was saying, when I was with Hongjoong I had asked a few questions about Jaerin," Mari explained. "He's known her a lot longer than I have so I was hoping he might have a few details on her that I didn't know about. Though most of it was just her constant attempts to pursue him in the past, it didn't seem like she had any other intentions besides those for the longest time."

"Wait, why are you talking about—" Jongho began, but was quickly cut off by Yeosang speaking over him.

"If you don't mind me asking, Mari," Yeosang questioned, giving her a curious glance. "Since he apparently knows her better than us, how did they meet each other? According to Wooyoung and San, she's used his existence as leverage over you often and Hongjoong doesn't have the greatest connection with her either."

Mari thought about it for a moment, recalling back the information she had received from him a few days ago. "He said their fathers are business partners, which probably led to the two of them meeting each other. Plus the fact that we all attend the same school as each other I think the interactions between us all are inevitable."

"Business partners?" Yeosang quickly repeated though a hint of confusion was evident in his voice. "How could they be business partners when the Lee Faction is a crime syndicate... What does Hongjoong's father do for a living, Mari?"

She opened her mouth to reply, but not a word came out. What does Hongjoong's father do for a living? She had never been too bothered to ask because it wasn't important to her and for a good while in their friendship his father had never shown his face to even meet her. She does know that his father is very wealthy though, as he has his own secretary and Mingi's family works under him as well. Mari had just assumed he was a CEO of some sort and kept walking for brevity's sake. "I don't... know actually."

"The Lee Faction has tons of surface level business though," Jongho exclaimed, finally getting his say in the conversation. "They use these many businesses as a source of income and to hide their illegal means away from the authorities. I've only been to about two of them before, just large company buildings that tower over the city with lots of ordinary people working there as a cover up to their true colors. Maybe his father is just one of those people?"

"I don't trust that," Wooyoung immediately responded, the gears in his brain beginning to turn as he thought over what Mari and Jongho had said. "There's something here that isn't connecting right with the rest of the information we have and I don't like it."

"He's right," Yeosang agreed. "I'd feel better about his family's involvement with the Lee Faction after a couple of background checks and looks into their history. It might give us some solid evidence as to why Jaerin would betray the Seo Faction despite our clear efforts to appeal to the rest of her faction. San, are you good at research? I could use a hand since I can't exactly clue the intelligence team on our efforts."

He nodded in response, earning him a shocked look from Mari. "You're serious about to dig into Hongjoong's family background like that? Over a small speculation? What if... what if he's not even involved in this whole ordeal?"

"You're not telling me you trust him still, even after the information he's given you?" Wooyoung asked, unable to hide the clear confusion that was written across his head. "Mari, he's suspicious. Well not him as a person, but his father sure is. What are you doing to do if his family ends up being an ally to the Lee Faction in our demise? You can't put your full trust into him right now, not when his family could be involved in your possible death."

Mari didn't respond to his words, trying her best to craft some witty remark or quick counter argument. Her eyes darted from each person in the room, trying to find someone who would take her side on the stance. Yet Jongho sat on the ground with his arms crossed, fiddling with his hands in order to avoid her glaze. San gave her an apologetic smile and Yeosang simply stood there, his eyes constantly on either Wooyoung or Mari. "But Hongjoong... he's just—"

"Let's be honest, Mari." San started, trying to be as frank as he possibly could. "Wooyoung is right to be suspicious of Hongjoong's father. We don't know what his father does for a living, you don't know what business his family does in general. Are you not at least a little bit skeptical of that family? They're hiding secrets from you, rather important secrets in my opinion."

"But I'm hiding secrets from them!" She exclaimed, desperate to get her point across. Yeosang scoffed as she spoke, probably picking up on every single nervous habit to depict what was true and false in her words. "Do you think I just walked up to Hongjoong one day and said oh I didn't mention this before but my father is a fucking mod boss? If we're going to suspect them just because we don't know what they do for a living wouldn't that be extremely hypocritical of us? Of me?"

Wooyoung slid off of Mari's bed in one quick movement, picking up her current replacement for a phone and handing it to her. "If you trust him so much then call him." He demanded urging her to take it out of her hands. "Call him, put him on speaker, and ask him what his family does for a living. We have Yeosang with us right now, he can tell when basically anyone is hiding secrets from him."

She cautiously took her phone out his hands, staring at her reflection through the black screen. Jongho shielded his eyes from the sight in front of him, covering them with his hands while San looked as though he was going to pass out from holding his breath. "I need you to trust me, Mari." Wooyoung began, putting his hands on her shoulder and revisiting the urge to shake her to get his point across. "I know how you are, but we need your full and undivided attention and trust towards us right now. If we don't trust each other fully how in the hell are we going to get the Underboss, Consigliere, and your own father to trust us with the information we're trying to bring to them?"

Mari held her phone in a tight grip, unable to respond to the words that were coming out of Wooyoung's mouth. "Seo Mari, next in line in the Seo Faction, my best friend since childhood, and the person I'm willing to lay my life down for no matter, do you trust me?" 

All three of the boys behind them winced out loud, covering their eyes or mouths or simply turned the opposite direction away from them. Mari shot them all an annoyed glare, resisting the urge to break away from Wooyoung and fight them all at once. She quickly shook them off as her face contorted with reluctance, her reflection in the phone screen showing just how pitiful she looked. "I trust Hongjoong lot but... I trust you too. Fine, I'll do it. I'll call him."

"This is getting more intriguing by the second," Yeosang commented, quickly turning around and joining the two. They shared confused glances as the Consigliere's son kept urging her on. "What are you waiting for? Go ahead and call him."

Jongho and San joined not long after him, practically breathing down her neck as they tried to get a good few of the phone's screen. Mari tried to put a bit of space between her and others, but every one of them was stuck to her side like glue. They wouldn't even give her privacy to unlock her phone to hide her password from them. "Get off me," She complained, glaring at both San and Wooyoung who were the closest to her.

"This is my first time hearing him, I gotta make sure I get a good feel for his voice so I can beat him up if I ever need to," San replied as Mari scrolled to her contacts, Wooyoung nodded in agreement despite having already met the boy before. She held her breath as she called Hongjoong's number, slightly begging whatever higher entity out there would be on her side. She didn't even get halfway through her thoughts when she was put on voicemail, the automated voice blaring through the high volume speaker of her phone. "What?"

"Did he just... not answer my call?" Mari questioned, ending the failed attempt to try again. Yet just like last time she was immediately put to voicemail again, not even ringing first. Hongjoong never just hangs up on her, let alone not even answer her phone calls. The two of them had already established earlier that the boy would wait for her to call him because she barely even texts anyone. The girl tried again one last time as if the third time would be her lucky try but she was given the same result as earlier. "That's weird... I've never even been dragged to voicemail before by him."

"Suspicious," Wooyoung mumbled, earning him a quick and small jab to the stomach by Mari. He doubled over in pain as he fell to his knees, glaring up at the girl as he yelled at her, "Am I wrong? You just said you've never been put to voicemail and look at what's happening when you need him to answer for once?"

"Her phone also isn't ringing though," Jongho pointed out, holding his hand out for Wooyoung to take. "I'm pretty sure phones don't automatically just put you to voicemail, they ring a couple of times to alert the receiver. So even if he was trying to avoid her, we'd at least be hearing her phone ring."

"That means either Hongjoong's phone is dead..." Yeosang suggested, "Or Mari has no service."

She tried to call Hongjoong again, growing frustrated with her futile attempt. "There's no way I have no service. We've never had an internet problem in the manor, we can't have an internet problem in the manor when half of the intelligence team is here on a daily basis! His phone must be dead, that's why."

"Then why does your phone have the no service message in the corner of your screen instead of three bars?" San pointed out, making everyone's eyes dart towards the corner of her screen. Truth be told, right beside her battery life were the words no service staring them all down. 

The group was silent for a moment, trying to comprehend what was going as best as they possibly could. The Seo Manor doesn't have terrible connection, they've never even seen a phone go into its LTE mode while in the surrounding area of the house. "The intelligence team," Yeosang gasped, his eyes wide with horror as he immediately turned around to run out the door. "Oh no, oh no!" All of his hard work and dedication, all of the information and materials he had gathered with the help of the Seo Faction's intelligence team that his own father had placed him under might have just gone straight down the drain.

The group immediately went to chase after him, though Jongho was slightly hesitant to follow, in order to stop him. They didn't know what was going on yet, rushing to conclusions could cause a massive panic for others in the faction. "Yeosang, calm down! Let's think about this for a second, okay?" Mari asked him, grabbing a hold of his wrist and dragging him back towards her. "Maybe it was just the area we were in or the type of phone I have. The whole manor can't possibly have no connection at all... right?"

"There's so much I haven't finished yet, things that you and the Consigliere have asked for me to do," He panicked, running his hands through his hair so aggressively that he might just pull it out. "If there's no connection in the manor all of it will be gone, important leads that could have helped everyone standing in this very spot."

"I'm sure there is an explanation for this, okay?" San tried to comfort the Consigliere's son, patting his back gingerly as if he'd break at any given moment. "We can go ask the Underboss and Mari's... uh... her father... if they know anything about what's going on."

"Wait a second, stop I'm being serious right now," Jongho interrupted, glancing around the group with a confused expression. He paused for a few moments and stood still, the only thing moving was his nose as he took a quick sniff of the air. 

"What are you a dog? We've got more important things to be focused on right now." Wooyoung insulted, immediately getting hit upside the head by Mari. The boy mumbled something under his breath, probably a few curse words as the whole group turned the younger boy.

"No, I just..." He trailed off, cocking his head to the side as if he truly was a canine. He seemed confused as he continued to look around them, unable to find a point of rest. "Do you guys smell that? It smells like... smoke. Really strong smoke." Mari, Wooyoung, and San all tensed up at the same time, the memories of the burning Utopia fresh in their minds thanks to its rather traumatic experience. 

The only problem was that there was no fire to be seen. But the longer the four stood around each other, the closer the smell began to waver through the air and reached their noses, filling their lungs with the dreadful smell. "Yeah, I'm not about to stand around to find out what that is," Wooyoung admitted. 

"Yeah we should go—" the lights hanging off the walls flashed on and off before breaking open, the glass shattering and flying across the hallway. Mari covered her head instinctively at the loud noise, trying to minimize any possible damage that might come her way. The Seo Manor was quickly becoming shrouded in darkness, all the lights suddenly shutting off and the power in the entire manor failing every electrically powered system. 

"It's a blackout!" San quickly exclaimed, but not before somewhere farther in different parts of the manor blow into pieces, smoke filling the entire building quickly as explosions went off in every direction. Mari fell to her knees as she tried to cover her head, the detonations shaking the entire manor's foundation and making it hard to stand. Not long after the explosions ceased was the sound of furious screams and gunshots echoing across the hallway and blaring loud in their ears.

"This isn't just a blackout, we're under attack by the sound of it," Jongho tried to chime in, his voice overshadowed by another explosion from a totally different direction from where they were. "And it feels like our attackers are going to tear the whole building down if they have to!"

"You're kidding me," Mari mumbled, almost laughing at the scenario they were in. "The Kim Faction are here, Jaerin gave them everything they needed to attack us. We were too late."

"If the Kim Faction are here that means that the assassination group is here too," Wooyoung explained turning down the hallway where most of the most seemed to be coming from. "They're here to lower our numbers. They're here for you, Mari, or your father. You've got to get the hell out of here right now."

Mari turned towards Wooyoung with an annoyed look on her face, almost offended even. "Are you trying to make me run away?"

"Yes," He answered her. "That's exactly what I'm trying to do. They're here to kill or take one of you, and I'm not about to let that be you."

"Guys," San blurted, a nervous chuckle leaving his mouth as he put himself in between Mari and Wooyoung. "Not to be that guy or anything, but we've kinda got more important things on our hands right now than arguing with each other. We all know that Mari isn't going to just leave no matter how hard you want her to, she didn't leave the Utopia when it was on fire for god's sake!"

She gave Wooyoung a smug smile, almost proud of herself for her reckless actions. The boy rolled his eyes in turn at her behavior and San continued on. "Let's just focus on the task at hand. Find Jaerin, find the Underboss, go from there. One of us should go and find the boss to make sure he's not in harm's way because if that assassination group from Kim Faction is actually really here like Wooyoung said, he's in extreme danger if he's alone." 

"I'll go find Mari's father," Yeosang volunteered almost immediately, intercepting Mari's attempt to throw herself into the most dangerous area in the Seo Manor yet. "Mari should go find Jaerin and apprehend her as quickly as possible. If Jaerin gets away now, it's game over. This attack is our solid evidence of her betrayal. Wooyoung should go with her, the assassination unit most likely has their eyes on Mari as well and they'll take whatever chance they have to get her alone."

The sound of gunshots was getting closer to them, their short moment peace beginning to run thin. "I'll try and find the Godfather of the Lee Faction and Jaerin too," Jongho quickly offered, raising his hand up as if he was answering a question in class. "More eyes on the Lee's the faster we can find them... right?"

"Then I'll find the Underboss then," San exclaimed, clapping his hands together at the conclusion they've arrived at. "Remember, no matter how dangerous the scene gets, you're not allowed to die. The death of any one of us will silence the truth about Jaerin. Stay alive or I'll kill you all myself. Got it?"

"Got it." They all repeated back.

The group immediately spread off into several different directions, trying to find the quickest possible way to get to their intended destinations. Mari was going to run off with them, an animalistic instinct inside of her tapping into play. Lee Jaerin, daughter of the Lee Faction Godfather and traitor to the Lee-Seo Alliance, was going to die by Mari's hands if it was the last thing she could do. The girl had only gotten a taste of Mari's anger in the most mundane way possible, so one could only imagine how the Seo Faction heir was going to react once she got a loaded pistol in her hands.

"Lee Jaerin," She growled, marching straight towards the stairs that led deep into the heart of the fight. "I'm going to fucking kill you."


	40. Cross My Heart and Hope to Die

Wooyoung didn't exactly know how he ended up where he was. The last thing he remembered was trying to follow after Mari in the nearly pitch black manor, the sounds of gunshots and screams from power struggles echoing off the walls. They had tried to stick close to the walls of the manor, out of the middle of the fight against Mari's will. As much as the girl itched to throw herself straight into the middle of a fight, Wooyoung had to keep her on track. They weren't trying to start a massacre, they were trying to find Jaerin.

Though Wooyoung doubted Jaerin would be in the Seo Manor anymore. The girl was as soft as dough, she nearly cried when Mari had attacked out of pure frustration and she wasn't even armed with a weapon. Why in the world would the Lee Faction heir stay in the manor where the fight is occurring? She most likely had run away the moment the Kim Faction had signaled the beginning of their assault on the Seo Manor.

Despite his very many doubts that were brewing up in his head, he continued to follow after Mari. He had no choice but to do so, not when there was a possibility of her being hunted down by a pack of wolves. He'd rather die than let Mari be mauled to death by the people who were planning to kill her father and murdered her mother in cold blood. Plus, the girl was absolutely unstoppable at the moment. 

In a sense, she was like a cobra. Slithering through the darkest parts of the room and waiting for her chance to strike. Mari's anger was her venom, festering, and growing stronger within until she found her prey and was able to attack now that she was provoked. She really did live up to that snake ring on her hand, the basic embodiment of an infuriated snake.

Somewhere along the line, however, the two were separated. Mari was no longer in his sights, long gone and off somewhere running around the manor in a fit of rage. He was supposed to stay by her in order to keep her from making some sort of irrational decision or being attacked by their enemies, not only Yeosang but her own father had appointed him to do so. Yet here he was, confused on where exactly he was and what was going on.

He had entered a room trying to find her, squinting hard and hoping that his eyes would adjust to the darkness of the manor. He was standing right in the door frame, not daring to walk in without any sort of backup to follow behind him. "I'm not that stupid..." Wooyoung mumbled, carefully peering towards the eerily silent room. Everywhere else in the manor was bustling with action and noise but this singular room was quiet and it simply didn't sit right with his stomach.

He tried to back away from the room, turning his heel into a totally different direction until he felt a hand grab at his ankle from the shrouded darkness. Wooyoung bit back a scream of pure terror, caught off guard, and immediately assumed it to be one of the soldiers who had fallen in battle with the rival faction. However, the hand was warm and alive, digging their nails into his skin and dragging him back into the darkness of the room. The boy grabbed a hold of the door frame, trying to keep himself from being pulled away by the mysterious person and shaking them off his ankle.

"This isn't the fucking Jigsaw movies!" He yelled in frustration, flailing his leg around to try and make them lose their grip on his ankle. Yet they seemed keen and dragging him away, their grip tightening and their strength increasing with every second. "Let go of me!" 

He lost his grip as he tried to heave himself out the doorway, his hands fumbling and slipping on accident. Immediately Wooyoung dragged away, aimlessly clawing at anything he could get his hands on to stop him from moving. Yet the speed he was being pulled at was much faster than he could shoot his hands out to grab at any object that whizzed straight past him. He mumbled curses to himself as he reached down towards his leg, reaching out the hand wrapped around his ankle to pry them off instead of fighting against it. 

Once he was far enough in the room, however, he was let go. They released their hands from his leg despite leaving a rather harsh red bruise from holding onto him so tight and quickly stepped away from him while they still had the chance. Wooyoung's eyes struggled to adjust to the even darker room, only being able to make out blurry shapes and unable to identify what they might actually be. As he got off the ground, rubbing his leg to soothe the pain it had endured a few seconds ago, the doors to the room shut closed. 

A locking sound followed after the closing of the doors, signally that he was trapped inside of the dark room with no known way out. "Are you serious right now," Wooyoung mumbled, blinking his eyes rapidly so that he could adjust to the darkness and begin exiting the room in any way possible. 

To his knowledge, there was absolutely nothing in the room he had been dragged into. It was a big empty space with tiled flooring, but that was it. No furniture dotting around the room, no objects randomly scattered about, not a single remnant of life was in the room. It was just dark and quiet and empty, the only thing he could truly hear was the sound of his nervous breaths and the pounding of his heartbeat in his chest. At least he knew he wasn't alone for the most part, as the person who has dragged him inside of the room was most likely locked inside as well.

The sound of heels clicking against the floor caught him off guard, nearly jumping out of his skin at the sudden eerie noise. "Wooyoung?" A voice asked, feminine and familiar to him, but he couldn't exactly place his finger on where exactly it was familiar from. "That's you, right? Jung Wooyoung?"

"Who's asking?" He replied, indirectly answering their question. The sound of approaching heels stopped, the last click echoing through the room's walls and distorting his sense of direction. Though his response made the voice chuckle, her sickly sweet laughter flooding the room and messing with his mind again. Her laugh was bouncing off the walls like a ball, making it hard to pinpoint where she was truly located in the room.

Just as Wooyoung opened his mouth to reply, something stabbed him in his side. It was a small aching pain, too small to be a knife piercing into his side. Yet when he suddenly felt his brain begin to shut down, all sense of consciousness washing from his body, he knew something was wrong. He held his hands up towards where the punctured feeling, determined to take whatever had entered his body out, but the minor aching began to spike in pain. His side was practically throbbing as he fell to his knees and soon to the ground completely, fading in and out of consciousness as his head began to spin. 

Wooyoung tried to force himself off of the ground, reaching towards the locked doors desperately as he lost all feeling within his arms and hands. The heels began to approach him, slower this time, and making their clicking of the ground more melodic than before. "Don't worry, sweetheart. You'll find out soon enough. For now... I just want you to sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. After all! We're approaching the main event now."

"They won't..." Wooyoung mumbled, involuntarily closing his eyes as he tried his best to stay awake. "Let you get away with this," Yet the combination of the throbbing pain in his side, the dizziness in his head, the loss of all movement in his body was making it difficult. It was only a matter of time before he completely blacked out, unable to speak and move and vulnerable to the enemy that stood before him. 

There was a slight chuckle in the air after his consciousness was gone. He was still breathing but was no longer aware of his surroundings enough to stop anyone from doing something to him. "Oh but sweetheart...," they spoke, watching the rising and falling of his chest to make sure he was still alive, "I already have."

* * *

Mari hid behind the corner of the hallway, her back pressed up against it as if she was trying to phase into the structure. On the other side of her were several loud gunshots that were following the bullets that whizzed past her, embedding themselves into a door that's on the opposite side of the hallway. A few Kim Faction goons had spotted her trying to creep away from the danger, searching for Wooyoung after losing him amiss the chaos. Armed with no weapon on her person she was forced into hiding, running away as fast as her legs could take her.

"Wooyoung, where the fuck did you go?" She mumbled as the sounds began to cease, only to be followed by the reloading of a magazine into a firearm. Mari cursed under her breath as she peered around the corner, greeting by the sight of a muzzle being pointed right in her general direction. The girl disappeared around the corner again when her enemies pulled on the trigger and began shooting at her again, forcing her to her knees and covering her ears to block out the noise. 

How long was she going to wait in this little hideaway of hers? Until the Kim Faction soldiers ran out of ammo? They were in the Seo Manor to wage war on their rival faction, they were undoubtedly armed with as much ammo as they needed to continue pushing on the fight. 

Her only current option was to continue walking down the dark hallway and hope it didn't come to an end. Who knew when those men would realize she was hiding anymore and trying to make her escape. If Mari was walking towards a dead end they'd catch her in an instant. "I'll take anything at this point," she told herself as she cautiously began to sit up, her legs weak from the anxiety that tried to arise within her. "A pistol, a baseball bat, a fucking hairbrush. Anything that can get me out of this situation."

She wondered if the Kim Faction members could see her face. Maybe that's why they were relentlessly attacking her? Because they recognized her to be one of the main targets that their faction was after? Or maybe it was just because she was on the side of their rivals and they were ordered to murder anyone of them on sight. Whatever it was, Mari didn't like the idea of either of them. 

"Where the fuck are the snipers when you need one," She growled, lamenting on the day San had been temporarily working as a sniper for the Utopia mission. What she wouldn't give to get him on her side again.

Mari waited until the shooting had ceased, listening for the enemy to reload their weapons again as she began sprinting down the hallway. Her running form wasn't the best it could have been, slightly sloppy due to her pushing out as much energy as her Boyd could exert to get down the hallway. A loud and sharp pop noise exploded from behind her as a small object whizz just past her, penetrating the wall beside her instead of her head. She turned around with an arrogant grin as she yelled back at them, "Stormtrooper aim!"

Terror waved over her face as her eyes landed on her attacker, nearly stumbling due to the mere shock of the sight in front of her. Standing where the men of the Kim Faction originally stationed was a lone figure, aiming their shotgun at Mari's body with great concentration and focus. Lightning struck the ground outside of the manor, flashing the windows with its bright white light and illuminated the figure in front of her. Her attacker was rather small, not that far from a petite figure, dressed in all black clothing and a mask covering their face to hide their features.

The assassination group had caught up to her, but she didn't even know where they had come from. "You're fucking kidding me."

Lighting flashed again as the rain began to pour down outdoors, lighting up her attacker's face and displaying the crinkling around their eyes as if they were smiling at her. Their hands rested upon the trigger of their weapon as they focused in on Mari, evaluating where she was the most vulnerable at the moment. The girl immediately fixed her running form and pushed herself to run faster, sliding across the carpet in the hallway as she tried to make her getaway. As much as she'd love to fight the assassination group that was failing after her, she wasn't well equipped to take on the challenge.

"Dammit, Wooyoung!" Mari cursed as one shot was fired, just barely missing her shoulder when she made a sharp turn down a hallway. "You're my appointed bodyguard for a reason, where did you even go?" The girl spotted a door on the hallway that was left open, probably after whatever men that were inside had rushed out to defend the manor. She practically threw herself inside as another shot was fired, shattering a glass vase sitting on top on a round table. 

Mari slammed the door shut, locking herself inside and immediately darting out of the way of the door. She held her breath as her attacker tried to open it, yanking and pulling on the door handle aggressively to try and force it open. Her eyes began to scan the area for any sort of makeshift weapon she could find, anything that could at least be a little helpful against an assassin armed with a shotgun. Though the room she had entered seemed like a common conference room, a big round table in the room and chairs surrounding the object. The chairs were scattered about the room creating a rather complex terrain to move through, so she could possibly use that to her advantage. 

"Gun, gun, gun..." She repeated to herself, quickly searching through every bookshelf and hidden compartment she could find. "It doesn't even have to be a gun," Mari spoke as if trying to bring the luck gods into her favor. "In fact, I can take a stapler and make it into a weapon! As long as I don't die here it's fine."

A clicking noise echoed through the rather empty room as thunder slowly began to roll through the area after the lightning strikes, signaling that the attacker was reloading the shotgun in their hands and getting ready to simply aimlessly fire into the room. Mari cursed as she opened up a drawer next to a bookshelf, nearly forcing the drawer out of its place, before being greeted by an unused black pistol.

It seemed new, like it had been bought, loaded, and forgotten about all in one day. She quickly snatched the gun out of its resting spot as a bullet penetrated the wooden door, a warning shot for her enemy's arrival. Mari jumped to action immediately, pressing her back against the wall and tightly holding onto the pistol's trigger as she waited for them to enter.

Instead of busting the door down, the door handle jingled around for a few seconds as the lock was picked. The muzzle of the shotgun entered the room first as if it was stalking and sniffing her out before the actual person decided it was safe to walk in. Quietly they began to creep through the door, their eyes focused on what was in front of them instead of Mari who was silently standing beside the door. "Surprise," The girl chirped before letting go of the trigger as she aimed towards their chest.

Her aim as a little off due to the close proximity, lodging the bullet right in between their collarbone and shoulder blade. Her attacker shrieked at the sudden hit, stumbling to their knees as soon as they tried to cover up the bleeding wound she had created. The black fabric of their clothing started to grow thick with their blood, revealing a rather nasty image of their injured skin. 

Her attacker gasped rapidly, trying to soothe the pain despite knowing the bullet was stuck in an uncomfortable place in their body and reached for the shotgun they had dropped after collapsing. Mari kicked away the weapon from their grasp, watching them reach for their only source of protection pitifully. "Where is Lee Jaerin," She demanded from them, pointing the muzzle of her pistol towards her injured attacker. 

The assassin cautiously raised their head towards her, one hand clenched around their wound as they spoke. "I'd rather die," They spat her voice rather high pitched and muffled thanks to the mask they wore around their face, "than answer a snake like you."

Her grip around the black pistol tightened as she pressed her finger hovering over the trigger, aiming the muzzle at their forehead. "You're going to die here in this manor anyway, you might as well be useful while you still have the chance." She threatened, glaring down the Kim Faction assassin. "Now answer me, where the fuck is Lee Jaerin?"

Her attacker's lips were sealed, refusing to hand over the information they knew and returning her furious glare with one built with fire. Before Mari could unleash a fury of gunshots, the weakened assassin spoke to her. "Escaping," They told her, forcing themselves to stay conscious. "You are not the only one... who wants her head on a silver platter."

Mari thought about their words for a moment before cursing to herself. The Kim Faction was going to kill Jaerin in order to silence her and keep her away from the Lee and Seo Faction. "I have to get to her before they do." She cursed, leaving the dying assassin where they were and immediately sprinting out of the room. If the Kim Faction got Jaerin before she did, it was truly game over for her. 

Murdering the daughter of the Lee Faction's Godfather would spark outrage within the faction, bringing them into the war between the Kim and Seo factions and stripping them of their alliance with the faction. As much as Mari didn't like Jaerin, she would much rather keep the devastation under control instead of letting the fatalities rise in numbers because of an additional powerful faction coming into play. 

The rain was pounding against the walls of the manor as she skidded down the hallway, rushing out onto the second floor opening where she could everything below her. Complete and utter chaos was occurring everywhere she looked, fighting between members of the Lee, Kim, and Seo faction as they battled it out against each other as if they were in the middle of a battle royal. When lighting would flash and thunder came booming through everyone's ears, she was able to catch sight of a few other figures as well: members of the Japanese yakuza fighting by the Seo Faction's side and several members of the assassination group the Kim Faction had put together attacking anyone they catch sight of.

None of them were Jaerin though, none of them were Wooyoung. She couldn't find them amongst the wild crowd no matter how hard she squinted to find them. "Incoming!" A voice screamed as a bottle was thrown through the air, carrying a fire within its container before shattering on the ground and bursting everything that came into contact with it a flame. Mari's eyes went wide as she watched the fire began to spread quickly, forcing the surrounding people to flee away or attempt to put out the flames as quickly as possible. The only thing Mari could think about was the burning Utopia, watching the building catch ablaze and nearly trapping her friends inside. 

"Watch out!" A familiar voice called out, slamming right into Mari's torso and making them both tumble towards the ground. A stray bullet smashed against a window, shattering the glass as she hit the ground with a heavy thud and wincing at the pain that shot up her back. When she looked up she saw the apologetic smile of San hovering over her, quickly jumping back onto his feet and urging her to do the same. "Sorry, I did that on instinct. Where's Wooyoung, wasn't he supposed to be with you in case that assassination group is here?"

"Good question," She answered him as she stood back up, noticing the angry red flames that tried to arise had been put out and covered the manor into darkness again. "I have absolutely no clue. We got separated and I haven't seen him since, but it's too late now anyway so I'm most likely their current target. They know I'm here, I just don't know where they are."

"Are you serious?" San mumbled, visibly frustrated by the news he had received. "At least we know they're not after the boss, you can stand a chance on your own better than he can at his age." 

Mari nodded her head in response, noticing something moving in her peripheral vision. When she turned to confront it, she only saw the back end of a heeled shoe disappearing around the corner towards where her father's office was located. There were only two prevalent women in the girl's life that would hear heels in the middle of a fight like this and she didn't like either option. "Scrap what I said, I think my father is the target." 

San gave Mari a confused expression, peering off towards where she was looking but unable to catch the same sight she had. "What do you mean? Was the assassination group not after you just now?"

"Hey San, I know we haven't addressed this yet but I'm really sorry for lying to you," She quickly said, spewing out whatever words came out of her both as she began to back away towards where the heeled shoes disappeared to. "I didn't want you to treat me any differently just because I'm the daughter of the Godfather all, but I've realized that you would have seen me as a friend either way and I appreciate you so much for that."

"What—," He began, unable to keep up with Mari's pace. "That's not important right now. Why are you—"

"I need you to trust me again, just like you have in the past no matter how many times I've nearly pissed you off or brushed off your need to be there for me as a friend," She demanded. "Go find Jongho and Wooyoung and bring them to my father's office. Come armed, and if I don't answer the door when you get there just bust in there guns blazing, okay?" 

"It sounds like you're preparing for the worst." San pointed out, immediate worry donning his face as the worse processed in his head.

She smiled at him, spinning the black pistol by its trigger guard. "I might be. It all depends on how angry I am when I get there." 

Without letting him reply, Mari quickly dashed off towards where the heeled shoes were spotted. The adrenaline was pumping within her veins like gasoline to the car, fueling her anger and anxiety as if festered up inside of her. Whether it was Jung Chaeyeon or Lee Jaerin, she wasn't going to let either of them lay a finger on her father. It didn't matter whether she was on good terms or horrible terms with him, that was overstepping the line.

She skidded to stop as she turned the corner, reaching the hallway that led towards the giant mahogany doors of her father's office. The door was propped open, slowly closing behind them as they entered inside. She couldn't see who was there, but she could definitely make a wild guess as who was trying to get in. "Lee Jaerin!" Mari screamed, her voice cracking as she did so. "Jung Chaeyeon! Either one of you, I don't care. Take one more step into that room and I swear to god I'll do more than just shoot your heart out of your chest."

There was a small chuckle that came from the opened door before being slammed shut in her face. "No! Fuck no, fuck no!" She cursed, rushing towards the mahogany doors, grabbing ahold of the handles and pulling them over. To her relief the doors weren't locked, swinging wide open to reveal the insides of the room. It was dark, just like the rest of the manor that had lost its power, the only light that was filtering in from the windows was the lightning that would strike the ground every so often outside. 

Mari cautiously walked in, trying her best to remember the layout of the office so that she didn't crash into anything. It seemed like anyone was inside the office either, no sight of her father, Yeosang, or the heeled figure anywhere inside. It was empty. It was silent. And then the mahogany doors shut behind her, the slamming of the doors booming and echoing through the room as she turned around to aim her pistol towards it again.

Lightning struck the ground outside, thunder blaring in her ears as the light flickered in through the windows of the room. The white light illuminated a figure that stood at the door, their gloved hands holding the door handle to the office shut and their body hidden within the black clothing that adorned their body. The familiar fedora like hat sat on their head as well, hiding their more prominent features like their eyes and hair away from her. Slowly they turned their head, glancing over their shoulder to stare at her in the darkness left by the lightning strike.

As thunder rolled through the manor once more, Mari shot at them though missing either way. It was a trick, luring her into her father's office and separating her from the rest of the faction. She wasn't going to waste any time now as she agitated a fight between her and the Kim Faction's assassin. All she needed to do was immobilize them, grab the information she needed, and run while she still had the chance. Their goal was to either kill or kidnap Mari, her goal was to find Jaerin and expose her to the Seo Faction before the Kim Faction killed her.

The Kim Faction member moved in the darkness, using it to their advantage as they traveled around the room with a quickness that Mari could barely keep up with. She tried though, aiming her pistol towards where they made the most noise and shooting a bullet with the best aim she could possibly do in the darkness. Mari assumed she at least grazed them a few times, a grunt or wince of pain escaping their mouth every so often she'd shoot.

Though the sound of the gunshot was distorting, the noise ringing in her ears each time she pulled the trigger and forcing her aim to get worse and worse. She cursed under her breath when she pulled back on the trigger again, only to find that she had completely emptied the pistol and needed to reload. Yet she didn't have an extra magazine on her as she simply grabbed a pistol in a rush to defend herself. 

She yelped when she felt a pair of hands wrap around her neck, shoving her to the ground and nearly crashing into a table on the way down. Mari squirmed under the weight of their body, trying her best to push them off of her as the air to her lungs was suddenly blocked. This was an attempt to kill her, choking her out on the floor of her father's office. 

"This..." they growled, squeezing tightly against her neck to completely break the transportation of air in her body. Their voice was muffled behind the mask that they wore, though they were barely speaking over a whisper. Mari could barely catch it as she was preoccupied with removing their hands from her neck. "Will be the last time you interfere with us."

The mahogany doors opened up behind them, catching both of the two off guard with the sudden intrusion. When the Kim Faction assassin turned their head, their grip loosening on her, Mari raised her leg to kick them away. She put as much strength into her legs as possible as she slammed both of them straight into their chest, sending the assassin tumbling into a table and tipping it over. Everything on its surface fell to the ground, shattering on impact and echoing throughout the room as a laugh flooded their ears. 

"Isn't this a sight for sore eyes?" Jaerin's voice spoke, her figure standing in the door frame. Mari immediately started to feel around for her pistol, dropping it when she had been trapped and choked on the ground. Yet she ceased all movement when she heard a gun being loaded and cocked, her eyes turning toward where the Kim Faction assassin stood and coming face to face with the muzzle of their pistol. 

"I can only imagine what's going through your head right now," Jaerin commented, closing the mahogany doors behind her as she began to walk around the room. "Why is Lee Jaerin here, she has no business to be here after all of the chaos she's caused," She spoke, strolling around in the dark office as if Mari wasn't on the verge of being murdered on the spot. Though Jaerin was the only thing keeping the Kim Faction member from putting a bullet in her head. 

The girl's hands dragged along the couch's cushions as she approached Mari, her heels clicking against the floor as she spoke. "I've simply come to watch the show, maybe even spice it up a little bit," Jaerin explained as she took hold of Mari's hand. She immediately tried to snatch her hand away from her, the sound of a trigger being fiddled with forced her to stop. The Lee Faction girl laughed as she snatched the snake ring off of her index finger, twirling the small ring around her pinky as she admired it. "How pretty is this... where did you get this from? I want it to be mine."

When Mari didn't answer her, her glare burning holes into Jaerin's head as she held the snake ring, she sighed in frustration. "Fine, I'll just take this one myself," She shrugged, turning to walk out of the office. She stopped as she placed her hands on the door handle, turning to the Kim Faction member who was still in the room. "Go ahead and kill her, she's all yours."

"Wait! Hold on!" Mari yelled just before the Kim Faction member could pull the trigger and Jaerin could walk out the room. The girl stopped in her tracks as another lightning bolt hit the ground, illuminating the room with its bright light as she reached her hand out towards Jaerin. "I'll do anything," She begged, gesturing towards the ring in her hands. "I'll do anything if you just give me back the ring. I promise you, Jaerin. I don't ever go back on a promise."

The girl turned towards Mari, a sinister aura radiating off of her as she held the snake ring in her hands. "Anything?"

"Anything." She repeated. "Anything for that ring." She could feel Jaerin smiling at her as she gestured away from her, pointing towards the Kim Faction member who had their gun aimed at her. 

Mari cautiously turned to them, noticing how their posture had faltered and the muzzle of their pistol was aimed at the ground instead of her body. Her eyes traveled up their entire figure, trying to understand why they were suddenly hesitant to attack their enemy. She saw their figure move under the darkness before a lightning strike from the storm flashed again, revealing the fiery red hair all too vibrant and familiar for her to forget. "Princess?"

"Hongjoong?" Mari questioned, her voice much more shrill and hesitant than when she was speaking to Jaerin. All the confidence within her body was washed away in an instant upon laying her eyes on the boy in front of her. "You're joking, right? This isn't... this can't be."

The pistol fell out of his hands as she approached him, taking a hold of his arm and pulling the black glove off his right hand. Thunder rolled through the manor as another lightning bolt struck the ground, giving her all the light she needed to spot the sun, moon, and stars inked on his wrist. It was nearly the same as the tattoo on her wrist, the sun tattooed on his arm colored in black to oppose her moon. "Mari, listen I—"

"Then kill him, Seo Mari," Jaerin offered," since you want this ring back so bad. Kill Hongjoong and I'll give it back to you. He is the heir to the Kim Faction after all, murdering him would give you all the vengeance your faction seeks and your poor mother's ring back. I promise, I cross my heart and hope to die."


	41. Rest Well

"I'm sorry you want me to what?" Mari asked her, shooting the girl what was supposed to be a hard and blazing glare. Though there was no doubt that she was trembling, her entire body shaking in pure terror and distraught as she backed away from Hongjoong.

"Kill him," Jaerin responded nonchalantly. She placed the snake ring on her finger, admiring the way it looked against her rather dainty hands. "Why should that be hard? You make into this room with every intent to murder any living soul who wasn't on your side of the fight and Hongjoong so happens to be one of them. And don't tell me you've already forgotten about your poor mother? The woman slaughtered mercilessly by him and his people?"

"Jaerin—" Hongjoong tried to defend himself to make him seem any worse than he already was.

She felt like her legs were going to give out on her, that her whole body was going to shut down at any second. "That was you?" Mari questioned him. "It was you who killed my mother and nearly ended my friend's life? You did that to them?"

"Not me... specifically?" He tried to convince her, trying to find the right words to say so that it didn't make the situation escalate even further. Jaerin stood and smiled, adoring the new piece of jewelry she had taken from the hands of someone else. "I wasn't even there, I was dealing with my own problems. You know that! I promise, princess, had I known I wouldn't have let it happen."

"Would you now?" Jaerin spoke, backing away towards the mahogany doors. "You may be the son of the Godfather but you've practically got no power there. You've alienated yourself from him so much that no one is willing to listen to you anymore unless you step up to the plate that's been displayed out for you. You couldn't change a thing, even if you wanted to. The only way your father could get you to assimilate with the faction was forcing you into that assassination group. And my, my, what a good killer you are."

Mari couldn't think straight, her head twisting and turning constantly at all the information that was being unwillingly thrown at her. She wanted to make it stop, she needed to make it stop. Every bit of knowledge she gathered from Jaerin's mouth was like daggers being thrown straight at her heart, making her bleed without even realizing it. That pristine image of a Hongjoong she had built was slowly being torn and battered into a pulp with every epiphany she had.

"Mari," Jaerin addressed her, holding her ring finger out to Mari to flaunt the pretty hand-me-down. "It would do you so much good to do as I say. You can hurt the Kim Faction by killing their last heir, you'll get your mother's ring back, and you'll even get the vengeance you've searched for as payback for all the atrocities that have donned your life. Doesn't that sound like a pretty good deal?"

The girl snatched the pistol out of Hongjoong's weakened hands, catching him off guard as she pointed the muzzle of the gun towards Jaerin. The Lee Faction heir yelped at the weapon pulled on her, her back pressing up against the mahogany door as she tried to back away from her. Mari's blood was boiling, practically radiating a blistering hot heat that matched the hostility of her glare. "How about I kill you first instead? I like that idea a lot more."

Jaerin was practically sweating bullets, not expecting the tables to turn on her so quickly. She tried her best to reach for the door handle as her hands trembled, preventing her from escaping as fast as she would have liked. Though Mari was already taking aim at the Lee Faction girl with her hand just hovering over the trigger. Oh, how she wished she was trigger happy at this moment so she could end the girl's life quickly.

"Mari," Hongjoong hissed, grabbing her wrist and forcing the girl to lower the pistol in her hands. "You can't kill her, as much as you want to right now you can't. You'll start a three-way war between the three factions if she turns up dead, throwing the Lee Faction straight into battle and turning on you in less than a second."

"Why should I listen to you?" Mari snapped, scowling towards the boy. "I listened to you ever since we met and look at how I ended up blindly believing the words that came out of your mouth? My father is being targeted, my mother is dead, my home is under attack, my friends nearly died by your faction's actions and I almost died by your hands! There's no reason for me to listen to you anymore."

She snatched her wrist away, making him stumble from with excessive force she had used. Though Jaerin had already made her grand escape, pushing the mahogany doors open and running as fast as she possibly could. It was either going to be the Kim Faction or Mari who got to the girl first and she wanted it to be the latter. "Mari please," Hongjoong begged, "I need you to trust me, this isn't a good idea."

"I did trust you, I basically trusted you with my life even," Mari responded, burning her eyes into the boy's head. "Only to find that you were going to be the one to take it away from me. You've lost it, Hongjoong. I don't know if I'll ever be able to trust you again. I don't even know if I want to trust you again."

The sound of a door being pushed open caught the two off guard, turning their heads to watch as Jaerin sprinted away in her high heels with her mother's ring in hand. Mari pulled the trigger on the gun and aimlessly shot at the Lee Faction heir, wildly missing her in the fit of rage. "I'm gonna kill her," She mumbled, starting to follow after her without missing a beat. "I'm going to kill Lee Jaerin, I'm going to kill her if it's the last thing I do."

Hongjoong grabbed her wrist, trying to stop her from doing anything irrational and attempting to reason with her one more time. Though Mari snatched her hand away with a quickness, skidding to a stop and pointing the muzzle of the weapon straight at him. "Touch me one more goddamn time and Jaerin won't be the only one I shoot."

The boy froze upon hearing her words, instinctively raising his hands in the air to show that he posed no threat to her. "Mari, please. Just listen to me just this once."

"I trusted you!" She wailed, her hands visibly trembling as she tightened her grip around the pistol. "Fuck, I was falling in love with you even. You had me stringing along thinking that when I was with you everything would be fine. Only for me to find out that at any given point I was with you, you could have gotten me killed? That you could have killed me? There's no coming back from that, absolutely no way."

* * *

"We searched," Yeosang spoke, his eyes not even daring to make contact with Mari's. The two were standing inside of an office building, the doors to the room locked so that no one but the two of them was inside. The building was given to them by the Lee Faction, compensating for the damage Jaerin had caused them. The Seo Faction could no longer return to the Seo Manor as the manor was completely destroyed by their rival faction and their location had been completely compromised. 

"We've searched the remnants of the manor as much as we possibly could, but there was barely anything left." Yeosang continued after that moment, taking note of Mari's silent demeanor. He simply sat down beside her in a chair, attempting to give her some sort of comfort by merely being by her side. "Everything's been destroyed, there is nothing to return to. That includes... that includes Wooyoung too. He's gone Mari, we can't find him."

"Are you sure?" She asked him, a sense of desperation in her voice that wasn't usually there. "You've checked everywhere? In the manor, outside the manor, around that whole territory and still nothing?"

"That area around the manor isn't ours anymore," Yeosang explained. "With the attack, the Kim Faction led on us and the information Jaerin released, they know all the ins and outs of that territory. It belongs to the Kim Faction, it is no longer Seo owned. Going there and staying there for long periods of time will get us killed on the spot and we've already suffered enough damage from one attack, we cannot handle another defeat."

Mari felt like her whole world was going to collapse on her. In fact, it already fell on her, now it was trying to suffocate her. First, Wooyoung had suddenly disappeared from her sight, resulting in him going missing after the fighting between the Seo and Kim Faction had ceased. Then Jaerin had taken her ring, an important object that was supposed to be given to her by her mother because all because she had refused to abide by her conditions. And then finally, Hongjoong.

How blinded by him was she? How long did she keep the rose tinted glasses the redheaded had bestowed upon her on for her to completely ignore every warning sign that came her way? There were so many red flags she ignored simply because she falling in love with him, only for him to turn out to be the enemy she loathed so much. He even tried to kill her, had Jaerin not entered her father's office when she did Hongjoong would have killed her in cold blood.

"This is all my fault," Mari choked, rubbing her eyes until she could feel the pain aching in her brain. "I did this, I was the catalyst of this."

Yeosang narrowed his eyes at her, visibly puzzled by her words. "Mari, this wasn't your fault. It was a combination of the Kim Faction and Jaerin's—"

"You don't understand, this is my fault! It's always been my fault," She argued, standing up out of her chair and facing him. "If I wasn't so blinded by anger, I would have never lost Wooyoung in the manor. If I just didn't fight with Jaerin so much, she wouldn't have run to the Kim Faction. If I just never met Hongjoong this whole situation wouldn't have even started! Can't you see that, Yeosang? You don't have to be nice to me, I already know I've created the problem and it's just fallen back onto the rest of the faction like goddamn dominos!"

Yeosang didn't respond, unable to find the right words to console her. A laugh escaped her mouth as she watched him struggle, though whether she was laughing at their situation or herself was unknown. "So you agree? You agree that this is my fault."

"I don't, I just need you to calm down first," The Consigliere's son demanded, forcing her back down into the chair she was in. "We need to focus on the problems at hand, not the problems of the past. We can't change those anyway no matter how much you curse and swear that this is your fault."

Mari folded her arms like a child, unwillingly listening to the words that were coming out of Yeosang's mouth. He quickly swerved the conversation back to the original topic, trying to avoid another emotion filled outburst from"Given the fact that Wooyoung isn't near the manor at all, I can guess where he is now. The same goes for Jaerin, as we haven't found any remnants of her body or any DNA that matched her's in the blood that's been spilled. Unfortunately, you're not going to like where they probably are."

"The goddam Kim's," She mumbled in response, kicking the ground with an annoyed huff. "What would they want with him?"

"Not exactly sure but... in my opinion?" He replied leaning back into the chair as his expression began to twist with worry. Yeosang collected his thoughts in his mind first before giving her his answer, trying to lay it down on her as softly as his honesty would let him. "Probably to draw you or the boss out of hiding. They have no eyes on us now with Jaerin away, so this was probably a way to aggravate us into attacking them again. But we can't,"

"We can't?" Mari repeated.

"We can't," Yeosang confirmed, "because we're so weak. Many of our soldiers are injured from the previous attack, jumping right back into a battle in this state is a suicide mission. We'll be slaughtered with our weakened forces."

"But the Japanese Yakuza—"

"Nakamoto Yuta has pulled themselves out of the fight," He answered, his dull expression donning his face as he spoke of what used to be their ally. "Their yakuza suffered many great losses from the Kim Faction and their assassination group. They were forced to retreat back to Osaka, Japan to regroup and handle their own business in their own country. They won't be gone for good but they are unable to help us at the moment, that's what Adachi told me before he departed."

Mari frowned, the thought of her long term ally pulling away from the Seo Faction's cause hitting a little closer to home than it needed to be. "Then the Lee Faction. Jaerin may have been a bad apple but they—"

"Are already providing us with enough," Yeosang finished for her. "They are providing us with a place to hide from the Kim Faction and rooming in their private hotels that they own until the Seo Faction can relocate. But they are facing their own problems, as Jaerin was their heir and she betrayed not just us, but them. The Lee Faction is usually sworn to neutrality and she broke it. Now they must decide on whether or not they go back to their neutral ways and part from the Seo's or join the fight against a much, much bigger faction than them even after seeing the damage they can cause."

Mari slumped in her chair, nearly wide-eyed at the information dump Yeosang had done. The longer they let the Kim Faction keep hold of Wooyoung, who knew what they'd do to him at that time. The Faction needed to heal from their scars, but with every moment they take resting, the Kim Faction grows more powerful than before. No matter what they did someone was going to get slaughtered in the process, and it most likely was either going to her or her father.

"You must heal too," Yeosang commented, placing his hand in her shoulder. "You didn't suffer any physical wounds, but I know what happened with Hongjoong is burdening you with this immense sense of guilt. You need time to recover, taking immediate action could mentally drain you."

"But if we don't—" She tried to argue, but the Consigliere's son was quick to act.

"Mari, I've done so much to willingly help you not just because you're the future boss of the Seo Faction but because I consider you to be someone close to me." He told her, raising from his chair. Mari watched as he got up, a pitiful and desperate expression on her face as Yeosang stared at her, nearly glaring at her with his stone cold eyes. "But I cannot help you any further, I will not help you any further on whatever you plan to do next. If you don't take a moment to rest for once in your life you're going to destroy yourself or get yourself hurt from the consequences of your actions. I refuse to feed into that, I'm sorry."

She clamored out of her chair as he began approaching the door, desperately trying to pull him back to her side. "Yeosang, I can't just sit around and do nothing while my friend is probably being tortured because of me! I have to do something, I'll do anything just to make sure that Wooyoung doesn't fall victim to the Kim Faction. I can't lose another person important to me, I can't!"

Yeosang's stopped in his tracks, his hands on the door handle as he hesitated to walk out of the room. "Yeosang," Mari begged, "I need you just one more time, please. I can't let Wooyoung end up like my mother, I can't."

The Consigliere's son didn't respond for a moment, as if his mind was running through a maze in order to reach the conclusion he was looking for. "Rest well, Mari," He responded as he unlocked the door and walked through it. She flinched when the door slammed close behind him, leaving her alone in the room to be her very changing and raging thoughts. The room was nearly completely silent after that, nothing but her heartbeat and mind making any sort of noise to fill up the room.

Wooyoung, Hongjoong, the Japanese Yakuza, the Lee Faction, Yeosang: all things she had lost in under forty eight hours.

"Fuck," She cursed, slumping back into her chair and letting her head fall into her hands. "What am I going to do now."


	42. Her Decision

"Let go of me!" Mari yelled, kicking and squirming in her captors' grasps. They were much stronger than the girl physically, holding both of her arms behind her back to render her nearly completely useless. They tried to keep her quiet, constantly trying to cover her mouth to muffle the fits and screams of pure anger that came from her. However, Mari would bite towards them if they even tried to lay another finger on her and she knows they'd much rather the whole set of ten on them. "I said let go of me or I'll make you do so."

She could have sworn saw them tremble at the thought and relished in the feeling of them being intimidated by her. Though her quick victory was cut short when she heard heels clicking the ground, echoing through her ears and immediately sending her into defense mode. "Look at you," Jaerin's voice spoke, the arrogance in her voice even more prevalent than normal, almost as if her voice was bass boosted into her ears. "The big and strong Mari fallen and alone."

The girl looked up with her jaw clenched tightly and her eyes growing wide with rage as the Lee Faction girl stood above her. On her left hand was the golden snake ring she had stolen, glaring at her with disappointed eyes as if she has willingly given up a belonging so personal to her. "It's a shame you just didn't do as I said at the manor, it wouldn't have had to turn out like this. We could have come to a compromise and you would have gotten your ring back." Jaerin commented, admiring how the snake ring decorated her dainty hand, "What a pretty ring it is indeed."

"I'd rather die than do what you ask of me!" She growled, trying to wiggle her way out of her captors' grasp. The girl lunged forward, shoving all of her weight to her chest and practically throwing herself towards Jaerin. The captors must have let go of her at the last second, watching her stumble and fall from overestimating just how much weight she was using and landing at Jaerin's feet. Though Mari quickly recovered, her nails like cat claws as she swiped towards her legs.

Though Jaerin simply disappeared from her sight, her hands phasing through the girl's ankles as if she was a ghost. Mari frightened herself at the sight, quickly crawling away from where the Lee Faction girl once stood as she tried to process what had just happened. She yelped when she felt her back hit something solid, only to find the girl standing over her once again with a mocking smirk on her face. "Oh I know you'd rather die but that's no fun, is it? I'd rather watch you scream and weep instead!"

Her laugh echoed across the walls, bouncing from place to place as it gradually began to become louder than before. Mari covered her ears in retaliation as the sound slowly descended into one mimicking nails on a chalkboard, screeching a horrible and ugly sound so deafening that the girl could barely hear her own thoughts. "Lee Jaerin!" She yelled, unable to muffle the sound. "What the hell are you doing? Stop it! Stop it right now!"

Mari was on the verge of begging, laying out on the ground with her hands clamped desperately over her ears. The ear splitting screech was enough to make tears start to well up in her eyes, blood threatening to fall from her eardrums at the disarming noise. Yet just as the screeching from her laugh started, it stopped. The room she was in had gotten completely silent, even Jaerin's odd ghostly figure nowhere to be found. 

All that's left was the sound of her ragged breaths, her fast beating heart, and the single teardrop that had fallen from her eyes in the whole process. The adrenaline pumping in her veins left her lying there for a moment, wordless and shocked, before her hands crawled up her shoulders, hugging herself tightly as she tried to calm herself down. She was tired, she was alone, and she was petrified. She didn't understand what was going on, she just knew that Jaerin was able to bring bad luck to Mari just by standing near her.

Though the girl looked up from where she laid, her arms still wrapped around herself when she saw a necklace drop into her line of sight. It was a shiny piece of jewelry, almost glowing in an iridescent light she couldn't exactly spot. On the necklace were two charm-like objects: a silvery lock and key that were connected to each other by the chain they hung on. The jewelry was familiar to her, she just couldn't exactly place where she had seen it before. It was blurry in her mind, no matter how hard she tried to recall any past memories of it in her life.

She reached out towards the necklace, her hands trembling slightly from the experience beforehand. Though she immediately retracted her hands away from when another pair scooped it up in theirs, dangling the lock and key charms in her face as if it was taunting her. "Have you made your decision yet?" Yeosang's voice asked, much softer and lower than Jaerin's loud and conceited one. The boy was looking down on her, his stone-cold eyes burning holes straight through her skull and into her soul. 

"My... decision?" Mari asked him, trying to force herself off of the ground but not finding the energy in her body to do so.

The lock and key began to drip with a crimson red, splattering the floor in little tiny droplets of the Consigliere's son held them away from her. "You don't have much time left, sooner or later you'll be forced to decide, and there will be no one there to help you." After a few moments of confused silence, the boy crouched to the ground beside her, letting the chain drop into its own puddle of blood and making direct eye contact with her. "You trusted them both with such open arms, and look where it got you. Now you have to decide if you are going to be their savior or not, and you can only take one."

When Mari didn't answer him, unable to understand what exactly the boy meant. He smiled. It was as if his stone exterior began to crack, showing off this sickening and dangerous smile he had hidden under a mask. "Mari, this," Yeosang spoke, his smile sending chills down her spine. This wasn't her Kang Yeosang, this was someone completely different from the Consigliere's son that she knew. "This is where doubt truly comes in."

And then she woke up.

Mari woke up in a cold sweat, her hands tightly gripped around her own wrists for comfort. Her breathing was heavy and off balance, probably a side effect from such an odd dream. Well, she wouldn't call it a dream, but she wouldn't call it a night terror either. All she knew is that this was the second time such a strange occurrence had happened to her while she slept. 

She forced herself up from her lying position, stretching her tight muscles and taking note of the fact that she was sleeping on a couch instead of a bed. Mari definitely didn't feel at home either, an emptiness and unfamiliarity surging her thoughts as she tried to gain an understanding of her surroundings. She had forgotten for a moment that she was in the hotel room that the Lee Faction had offered to the Seo Family as compensation for their heir's actions. Though Mark felt like she was in an overwhelming flashy apartment, like the type of apartments celebrities would find themselves in. 

The Lee Faction had lots of money on their hands, so of course, they were able to afford a hotel room of such caliber. It wasn't that hard for them to find one either, seeing as the Seo Family only really consisted of two people now.

Her father wasn't in the room at the moment either, now that she noticed. The light from the windows was a mix of burning orange and bright yellow, indicating that she has probably woken up around sundown or so. Her father must be out and about conducting whatever business in the faction he had to attend to. That was more important than waking Mari up to tell her he was leaving. Though she guessed that the man left without telling her was better than having to awkwardly face him and explain why she didn't catch Jaerin. Nor did she want to explain why she didn't have the motivation to go after the Kim Faction's assassination group either. 

She had completely cut off contact with Hongjoong after the attack on the Seo Faction, and it felt like months since she had last seen or spoken to Hongjoong now that she thought about it. The girl was purposely avoiding him like the plague, refusing to answer the millions of calls that blew up her phone and refusing to even attempt to return to that devil's palace they called a school. If Mari told him right now, she wouldn't know what to do. Not a word would leave her mouth, not a movement would be made, not a thing would be thought. She would be like a living breathing statue, unable to move and think for herself, but able to see and feel all on her own.

"Look who is alive!" San's voice chirped, usually preppy and happy for this time of day. She had completely forgotten that they had let the boy in the room, Mari was completely clocked out of reality until now. She couldn't help but be so, not when three of some of the important people had exited her life nearly all at the same time. The boy fell onto the couch cushion beside her as pure warmth radiated off of San as if he was the sun. "I was beginning to think coming here was a bad idea, you went to sleep almost as soon as I arrived here earlier. It's really rude to fall asleep on your guests by the way."

Mari turned her head towards him, trying to find the exact way to reply to him and give San the same energy he was exerting back. But the girl couldn't help but let her mind wander and think aimlessly when she looked at him. It had been two weeks or so since the Seo Faction had been infiltrated and relocated and only now had she noticed San had suffered a few injuries from the fight. Nothing major like how he was when the Kim Faction ambushed him, a few bruises that dotted around his face were healing and the wounds he had suffered around his body were bandaged and healing nicely as well. 

She wondered, where exactly had they come from? When Mari had seen him during the attack, he was practically unscathed, in perfect shape even. He must have gotten into some sort of skirmish once she left. Maybe he was hit involuntarily, maybe he had battled it out with a Kim Faction member. God forbid that he might have come into contact with one of the assassins the Kim Faction had, knowing how quickly the trauma could render him useless in a fight. "Mari, are you listening to me?"

"What?" She responded, blinking her eyes absentmindedly as she focused back on the boy. San's expression was full of worry as his attempts of starting a conversation had gotten completely overlooked once again. It's not hard for him to raise someone's spirits but Mari's overall demeanor wasn't letting him work his magic. "What were you talking about?"

He frowned at her response, growing frustrated with how she kept willfully ignoring him. The boy rested his head in his palms as he spoke in a pout, "You're thinking again, aren't you?"

"When am I not anymore?" Mari told him, staring off into the void. She couldn't help but think now, her mind turning gears big and small as she recalled moments she had so easily overlooked, not to mention the odd dream she was debating on whether or not she wanted to avoid or not. She was already preoccupied with one thing, she didn't need another confusing thing to torment her mind.

There were so many times Hongjoong had practically revealed his true identity to her, nonchalantly mentioning it and then proceeding to cover it up was silvery, weak lies even Jongho could see through if he was paying attention enough. Yet Mari had bought into every single one of them without question. He was telling the truth about one thing at least, he does tell lies all of the time. "All I can do is think at this point."

"All this thinking is blinding you from reality," San argued. "You've been so out of it, you've barely taken note of the changes around you. I mean, have you noticed that Jongho doesn't come around anymore?"

"He doesn't?" Mari questioned him, finally realizing that their doe eyed friend was nowhere to be seen. She thought he was just busy running around the Lee Faction like always, being sent off to do work as a part of his contribution to the alliance that was the Lee and Seo Faction. But if the former fighter wasn't coming around anymore to even greet her despite her dazed demeanor, that only meant one thing. "The Lee Faction—"

"They left," San nodded. Mari felt her heart drop as if it could drop any lower than it already was. Yeosang, Hongjoong, Jongho, all gone before she even had a chance to blink and process what was going on around her. "He tried to say goodbye since we didn't know if we'd ever see each other again, but you were too preoccupied with your own thoughts to notice. That's too bad... I was actually growing fond of him too."

Mari was ready to drown in a pool of self pity, just wanting to roll up in a bed that was actually hers and never rise from it again. Though San cut straight through her thoughts, taking his chance to talk to her while he still had her attention. "So, what's the topic in your brain this time then? Yeosang ignoring you? That Hongjoong kid? Or is it Wooyoung's disappearance? All of those would take a toll on one person's mind so I only assumed."

"Can I say all of the above?" She asked him, watching as San expressions continuously shifted into a look of even greater concern than before. "They're all connected, I can't help but think of them all at once. I don't know the exact location of Wooyoung's whereabouts, Yeosang refuses to assist me in my efforts to find him, and Hongjoong lied to me. He gained my trust and lied to me."

"To be fair you did the same thing," San pointed out. "You both lied to each other to gain each other's trust, so you can't really pin the blame on him."

Mari's blank stare spoke volumes, resulting in San immediately trying to apologize for his actions. To her this was different, if they had found out about each other's origins one day they could have talked it out. But there was simply more to the boy than the fact that he's in the Kim Faction and she had to hear the words coming straight from Jaerin's mouth. It would have made a completely different if she heard it from Yunho or Seonghwa or Mingi or Hongjoong himself. But from Jaerin? While she was in the middle of playing with a precious belonging to her? Mari couldn't help but react the way she did.

An awkward silence fell over the two, Mari's mind occupying itself with thoughts full of self pity and San unable to approach the conversation any more than he had tried. He wasn't Yeosang, he couldn't read directly into her and pick apart exactly what was eating away at her and figure out a solution of some sort. He was just a soldier to the Seo Faction, who had just lost a close friend of his and gone under the pretense that Mari could have ended up dying when the Kim Faction attacked. He wasn't really in the position to be helping anyone either.

She needed to get her mind off of things, her judgment had been clouded for too long and her mind was covered in rose tinted glasses. Mari needed to think about something else, in fact, she needed to stop thinking in general. The girl wanted to back to being clueless and dumb yet happy. But there was just no way she was going to return to normal anymore. Her life was forever in ruins, and she was forced to piece it back together with broken shards. "What am I going to do, San? What is there for me to do?"

He seemed intrigued by what she said, crossing his arms and listening to her silently. "I can't go to anyone for help anymore, the people who were my main support systems are gone. Not exclude you or anything San but..." She trailed off, trying to keep her thoughts together as much as possible. "Yeosang has so much power that I haven't even begun to grasp. He's the only reason I've gotten this far and within him, I can't do anything without going through my father and I know he's not about to help me go searching for Wooyoung. And god doesn't get me started on Wooyoung! I've never felt so guilty... so horrible about something that's happened to him in my whole life."

"Wooyoung's a tough guy," San reassured her. "He'll stick it out until the time is right and the Faction can attack the Kim Faction once again."

"But I was practically right there," She argued, picturing the scene in her mind as clear as day. "If I just hadn't stormed off without him, he wouldn't have disappeared, he wouldn't have been kidnapped. I could have stopped all of this from happening and I didn't. Now, look at me! In his true time of need, I'm powerless, completely powerless. All I can do is sit and hope that Kim Faction doesn't kill him before I can see him again."

He gasped out loud, catching Mari off guard with his sudden strike of pure genius. "Actually, you're not as powerless as you make yourself seem. You've got one thing that's keeping you away from Wooyoung but keeping him alive and breathing for another day."

The girl thought about it for a moment, unsure of what he meant before it finally clicked in her head. "Are you talking about... Hongjoong?"

"Precisely!" San exclaimed, clapping his hands and like a clown. "As much as I don't like that boy for making you sad and gloomy, he's your one way ticket to Wooyoung and getting him out of there. I mean... he is the heir to the Kim Faction right?"

"I mean... yeah..." She mumbled, unsure about the conclusion the boy had come to. "But we haven't really spoken since the attack on the Seo Faction. I mean, things happened and words were said and I've been avoiding him since then... I don't think now is the right time to ask him for anything."

"Mari," San began, crossing his arms in annoyance. "You want to save Wooyoung, don't you? He's sitting somewhere with the Kim Faction and we don't know how he is right now. He could be in perfect shape or he could be on his deathbed. They could be leaving him completely alone or they could be torturing Wooyoung to squeeze every little bit of information out of him, we just don't know. Hongjoong could be the only way you can find Wooyoung and save him because only heaven knows when the Seo Faction will be ready to attack the Kim Faction."

If you don't take a moment to rest for once in your life you're going to destroy yourself or get yourself hurt from the consequences of your action, that's what Yeosang had told her. Not to mention the Yeosang in her dreams seemed to be warning her about the things to come. She needed to set back and decide whether she was going to heed the boy's advice or just headfirst into the danger just like she had done before. This was her decision and it was a decision that would decide her and Wooyoung's fate for what could be the final time. 

"So?" San asked her, glancing up at her with an expectant gleam in his eyes. "What are you doing to do Mari? Are you going to wait till the last moment or take the chance you have now?"

She was silent for a moment, a storm cloud of thoughts engulfing her mind as she thought long and hard about what to do next. "Well... Yeosang told me that I needed to rest or I'd get myself into more danger than what I've already gotten myself into..." Mari commented, before scoffing quietly to herself. "But I think going to a dinner party would be a good rest for me, don't you think San?"


	43. Feelings Are Fatal

The forecast had predicted rain before she left the house, and she could see why. What used to be the pretty clear skies above her had become dark and cloudy, casting its dark grey shadow over the rest of the world as it prepared to cry thousands of tears. Mari could hear the slight rumbling of thunder in the distance if she listened close enough as well. Yet even despite the clear warnings of the evident showers that would pour on her head, she didn't grab a jacket or umbrella to protect her from the rain. She was a little too distracted to pay attention to her own well being.

"Are you sure you're going to be fine?" San asked her, sitting down in the grass as he glanced up cautiously towards the sky. "I mean, you did say this was the first time you've seen him in a while... right? I don't want anything to get wildly out of hand, the goal is to find some way to get to Wooyoung after all, not have you two nearly kill each other."

The two were at the bottom of a familiar hill with a footbridge that spanned over a long and large street that ran below it. They had been here before, around two or so months back when Mari and Hongjoong had gotten the tattoos that were inked on their skin together. She could remember the event that had transpired here like it was yesterday, the memories still fresh in her mind whether they were good and bad. What an ironic place to meet up.

"It'll be fine," Mari reassured him, absentmindedly picking at the grass as she spoke. "Or at least, I'll have to make it fine. Wooyoung's fate depends on whether or not Hongjoong is willing to help me at the moment and we have no clue whether or not he will even do anything for me after what happened at the Seo Manor."

San gave her a skeptical eye, not even sure if this plan is going to work or not. All Mari had done was shoot the boy a text saying she wanted to meet up and talk and didn't even respond when Hongjoong had sent a reply back. She was hyper focused on getting the information she needed to find Wooyoung on her own, and if she had to shake the information out of the boy she'd do it. He had to at least know something about her childhood friend's kidnapping, Mari would literally take any information that would be helpful at the moment.

Plus, with the knowledge that Hongjoong was the heir to the Kim Faction, he must have a little insight into what was going on. She knew he had told her that he didn't pander much in his father's "business" but he had to know something. Jaerin didn't even care about the work the Lee Faction had been doing before she met Mari and decided then was the perfect time to put all these connections she had to work.

"Well, I know this was my plan but," San began, "maybe you should have sorted out your problems with him first before proceeding to ask him about Wooyoung and the whole "dinner plan". I feel like a quick kiss and make up would be a lot more effective than just jumping into this without a second thought."

"San, we don't have time for that right now." She reminded him. "As you said, we can't wait till the last moment. Wooyoung needs us to get him out of... wherever the hell is. His whole family was slaughtered mercilessly by the Kim Faction and now he's possibly in the same position that they were in. That's rather traumatizing and I don't want him to be there any longer than he already is."

San nodded reluctantly, going forward with Mari without any more questions. "I mean... you're right. I just hope you're actually prepared just in case something happens and you don't know how to handle it."

"I can handle it, San, don't even worry about it," Mari told him, though she had no clue whether she was trying to reassure her friend or herself at this point. She's lying straight through her teeth as she attempted to a tough exterior, pretending like she wasn't genuinely nervous about what's to come. All she could think about was the moment of being confronted by Jaerin, watching as the girl spilled every little secret that the boy had to hide from her like it was water in a cup. 

"That's my cue to leave," the boy commented as the rumbling of a fast and loud vehicle began to echo from the distance, he was coming. San heaved himself off of the ground with a huff before placing a hand on her shoulder for reassurance. "I'm not going far, so just scream really loud if you need anything. I'll come running as fast as I can."

"Thanks, but I won't need it." She told him, earning her a rather bizarre and questionable expression from San but he didn't say anything afterward. He had disappeared from sight by the time a black motorcycle skidded to a screeching fault against the asphalt road, delivering the fiery redhead she had been waiting for. "Here goes nothing," Mari mumbled, lifting herself off of the ground as the boy hopped off the vehicle with ease. When the two had finally made eye contact with each other, tension began to get heavy in the air.

"So," Hongjoong began, leaning up against the body of the black bike with his arms crossed as she approached. There was a rather fresh bruise on his face right below his eye, as if he had gotten into a small skirmish before he had arrived. She'd be lying if she wasn't eying down the wound with suspicious eyes, as the last time he had any sort of significant wound was the ugly burn scar on his right arm. "You wanted to talk?"

"Wooyoung," Mari demanded, not wasting any time and getting straight to the point. She didn't want to spend any time on pointless chitchatting, especially not after she had blown up in his face completely back when the Kim Faction had attacked the Seo Manor. "Is that just another secret you were keeping from me or did you know they were coming after him?"

The boy took a deep breath, trying to maintain his composure at the quick topic change. "Okay, that was extremely fast, no I didn't know until you just told me," Hongjoong explained. 

"Wow, that's surprising. I would have expected you to know at least a little bit about what happened to Wooyoung since we are connected and all of that. Your little assassination group didn't fill you in on the details?" She scoffed, turning her back to him as she let the mocking tone in her voice be loud and clear.

He cringed at her words, unable to bite back just as hard and quickly switching the topic away from the mentioning of the assassination group. "You know, I just got here? You're already making it really difficult to have a normal conversation with you, princess." Hongjoong pointed out. 

"I don't want a normal conversation with you. You don't deserve a normal conversation with me," Mari clarified, spinning on her heel to face the boy. "The only reason I'm standing in front of you and talking to you right now is that I want to save Wooyoung before he ends up as another victim of the Kim Faction. I didn't even want to talk to you in the first place, I was convinced to come here so that I can get the information I needed and go back to living my life."

"Convinced by who? Your faction's high ranking members?" Hongjoong questioned, finally throwing as much bitterness and annoyance she had been giving him. She hadn't expected him to fight back so soon, taken back by his sudden outburst. "I came here on my own accord because I genuinely wanted to apologize and make up for my actions. Did you just come here to gaslight me and press me for information I don't even have?"

When Mari didn't respond to his questions, shocked by his sharp words. "What did you just say to me?"

He took another deep breath to control his next few actions before smiling at her. "What Jaerin said was right, Mari," Hongjoong explained, pushing himself off of the parked motorcycle and walking towards her. "I've got no power there, I can't fix or change anything even if I wanted to. I'm the estranged heir to the Godfather of the Kim Faction yet despite knowing this information you still come running to try to exploit me for whatever power you think I have. At this point, are you any different from Jaerin?"

"That's not..." Mari began, slightly a loss for words. "Me? And Jaerin? Hongjoong... no. We're not the same at all. That isn't the—"

"I didn't lie to you just so I could get the upper hand on you and kill you when I had the chance.." Hongjoong stated, his hands dug deep into the pockets of his jacket. "I lied because I knew an origin like that would scare someone I cared about away. The only reason Yunho, Seonghwa, and Mingi are still even with me is that in some shape or form they are involved with the place. You? I just thought you were some stranger that lived every day like it was your last. I didn't want to be the reason that one day you have actually lived your last day."

"And yet you would have been the reason I lived my last day anyway," Mari spoke, though more to herself than to the boy in front of her. 

"Why'd you think so little of me upon hearing the truth, Mari?" He asked her, a genuine question filled with pure confusion and slight heartbreak. "What did I do to make you think I wasn't worth your sympathy anymore?"

She blinked her eyes a couple of times at the boy, trying to recover from the huge information bomb that had been thrown at her and caught at the last minute. "I'm sorry, give me a moment to process this all in my head," Mari asked, taking a step away from him to put distance in between the two.

"Mari," Hongjoong begged, a hint of desperation in his voice as he went to close the gap between the two of them.

"What!" The girl responded, unable to compose herself unlike him. "I'm sorry, this is just... this is a lot! This is a lot on my tiny brain, okay? I'm trying to understand and please god let you know that I understand and I'm sorry but so much has happened and I don't know what to do anymore! I say that I'll return back to normal life but everything is starting to crumble right before my eyes. I've lost my friends, I've lost my support, I've lost my factions allies, nothing is going right and I can't handle everything at once anymore! I'm breaking and if there's one thing I want to do right it's to go and save one person who would have gone after me if I was in his place."

She took a deep breath, a frustrated smile growing on her face as she resisted the urge to slam her head face first into a wall. "And I'm talking about myself again, that's all I seem to do anymore now is talk about myself. It's not on purpose, I promise, it just happens and I don't even notice half of the time."

"Don't worry, I've noticed already," Hongjoong nodded, "but you can't just keep going off of the rails like this. If there's just one thing you can do for me, I need it for you to be honest with me right now at this given moment. I don't want you to be mad at me anymore, I don't to be mad at you anymore. I just need to know if there's any way I can fix this so that we can go back to just... being us."

Mari hesitated.

She didn't know exactly how to answer him because there was so much more going on that he just couldn't fix. If Hongjoong wanted her to be honest, she wanted to get Wooyoung back and the only plan she had in order to do something like that at the moment needed him to be completely down with leading straight into the lion's den. Mari didn't want to lie to him, there had already been enough lying in the relationship between the two that it got them to where they were now. 

Reluctantly, she smiled at him. "I want to have dinner with your family."

Hongjoong choked on his spit, caught completely off guard by the words that had escaped her mouth. "I'm sorry... you want to what now?"

"You asked me how you could fix this, this is how you fix this." She explained to him. "Your father is the leader of the Kim Faction, there is absolutely no way he doesn't know where the hell his faction took Wooyoung. I want to have dinner with your family so that later on that night and I can go snooping around for clues on where he might be. Plus, doesn't your dad want me to have dinner with your family anyways? This way we both get what we want."

"That is the most dangerous thing I've ever heard you say, are you asking to get yourself killed at this point?" When Mari only shrugged her shoulders, not giving the boy a direct and clear answer, his eyes widened in pure horror. "No, absolutely not. That's the one thing I just won't do."

"Why not?" She complained, frustrated with his refusal to do this for her. "You asked me to be honest, I'm being honest right now. This is the only way I can get any information on Wooyoung's current whereabouts and if I don't take this chance then I might not be able to get to him before your faction kills him!"

"Mari, my father will have you dead before you can even see your friend," Hongjoong argued against her. "Going to that house will be like walking into a death trap, your playing right into his hands at this point. I'm not going to sit here and let you get yourself killed like that."

The girl rolled her eyes at his complaining, not taking no for answer this time and grabbing a hold of the boy's shirt collar. She forced him to her level as she hissed," Hongjoong, this is the only chance I have right now. If I don't take this one chance and use it to the best of my ability, I'm not going to get another one like this again. I'd rather die trying to save him than find out it's too late and he's already gone."

"I really wish you wouldn't risk your life like this," Hongjoong commented, his voice barely above a whisper. Though, Mari picked up his words and gave him a sweet smile.

"I take after my mother a lot more than people think I do," She shrugged, finding amusement in his irritation with her. After a few moments, Mari shoved the boy away from her and spoke, "So are you going to help me or not? I don't really have all day and whether you say yes or not I'm probably going to do it anyway. Nothing is going to stop me from getting Wooyoung back, I hope you understand this."

"No!" He continued to decline. "And if you try, I'll stop you. What do you not understand from me saying he will kill you because he will kill you! There's a very logical explanation as to why you've got an assassination group on your back in the first place Mari and you want to walk straight into his hands?"

She shrugged off his words once again, not really bothered by his words. "No, he won't kill me because you're there. What other types of protection do I need besides you with me all time? That man won't dare touch me while we're in the same room together. And if he does? I'll... figure it out as we go."

The clouds above roared with a loud thundering sound, followed by little droplets of rain that began to rhythmically fall to the ground. Mari frowned as she looked up towards the sky, remembering that rain had been predicted for the day. "Listen Hongjoong, before we get soaking wet, this is the only thing I need for you to do for me. I won't do anything crazy and involve you in it again, but if you want to go back to being us then I have to get Wooyoung. There no sense of normal for me if he isn't alive and okay."

Hongjoong's shoulders fell at her proposal, the rain sliding off of his jacket onto the ground. He didn't want to conform to her risky ideas, not when the stakes were so high and the odds weren't in her favor. "Mari."

"Hongjoong," She responded, the raining getting heavier with every second they stood around out in the open. Mari felt her hair stick for her head and her clothes begin to soak in the rainwater, making the fabric heavy on her back. But she didn't mind, not when she was getting a little too desperate for Hongjoong's cooperation now. "Please, this is the last thing I'll ever ask from. I can't leave him there knowing everything that's happened to him, I can't."

He sighed after a few moments, giving up on trying to convince her otherwise. "Why are you so stupid?"

"Is that not why you liked me?" Mari asked him. "Wasn't my stupidity charming to you?"

"Liked you?" Hongjoong repeated, pulling the girl towards him with a sudden bolt of energy. "Mari, I'm in love you, don't ever put a past tense in that. You could literally stab me in the back and I'd still be head over heels for you."

"Are you sure you want to be declaring that type of stuff while we're standing in the rain?" Mari panicked, her ears turning bright red against the gloomy grey clouds and trying to shuffle out of the boy's grasp. "I mean, that's a very serious statement you're saying and we have the highest possibility of getting sick right now. Not to mention we were just fighting—"

Hongjoong placed a quick and soft kiss on her lips, watching as she silenced herself mid sentence. "Mari, please shut the fuck up, you have no clue how long I've been waiting to do this." He complained, leaning back to capture her in a sudden daydream once again. It should have felt wet and cold from the rain, it should have been gross and sticky from the humidity the grey clouds had brought along with them. 

Yet the boy was warm, so much warmer than she had originally imagined even. It was as if there was a fire inside of him that had been burning and producing so much heat with nowhere to go. So it made a little sense to her when she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer, she wanted that flame. That warm feeling of home she had lost and didn't think she'd be able to find again. 

"You have literally the worst timing possible," She managed to choke out, breaking away from him to catch her breath.

He ignored her to push her rain soaked hair out of the way and smiled at her. "Yeah, but I'd rather kiss you while you were alive and well instead of dead and bleeding."

Mari frowned at his response, not having a new snarky way to bite back at him. "Touché. But this does mean you're going to help me and let me have dinner with your family right?"

"Mari!"


	44. Be Our Guest

Hongjoong agreed. It took a while to get him on board with the idea, seeing as he was very adamant about keeping Mari away from both his house and his father. But after a couple of precisely planned arguments and an unfortunate amount of guilt tripping, she was able to make him agree. Despite everything that had happened after the attack on the Seo Manor, she was still mad at him though it may not look like it. So she ended up using that source of anger and frustration as leverage over Hongjoong, just this once. 

She knew that it wasn't the greatest way to go about things as she knew that manipulating people into doing things they don't like didn't usually end well. But Hongjoong had tried to kill her on multiple occasions so... she was just going to pay it forward this way. 

"They're not sane," Hongjoong had told her over the phone, attempting to prep her the impromptu dinner. "They hide it well, how much they analyze people. If they ask you any questions deflect it with another question, or give a question that satisfies their needs just enough. Watch what you say, how you act, what you see, they're always trying to keep control of what's going on in that house. That includes trying to control their guests who visit as well."

She could see why Hongjoong constantly escaped to Mingi's house when he was talking. They were control freaks, constantly trying to dictate what was happening in that house whether or not something was breathing or not. It didn't matter if you were under the Kim Faction or not, if you had a conscience that could be manipulated they'd take their chances. They were like the bars to a bird's cage, constantly trying to keep their son's free spirit behind lock and key so he couldn't escape again.

And Hongjoong had the audacity to let Mari rant about her family? He had it far worse than her, he had her worst nightmare. There's no doubt about it that everything Hongjoong was doing now to this day was an act of defiance to make his parents realize he was not a piece of property that they could change and control.

"This is going to be... much harder than I thought it would be," Mari mumbled, sitting in the back of the Rolls Royce with her feet kicked up on the passenger's seat. She really shouldn't be, seeing as she was wearing a white dress thanks to the formal dress code Hongjoong's father had pushed on them, but it's not like her driver was going to look at her. They had to keep their eyes on the road and if they didn't? That would be weird. "The fact that returning home isn't my biggest problem is extremely scary."

No one in the faction knew where she was going exactly, except for San and most likely Yeosang by now. The Seo Faction didn't have nearly as much intel as the Kim Faction did on their home base and family residence, so she had the ability to openly talk about the address to Hongjoong's home without worry. To everyone else, it just seemed as though she was going out to do the normal teenaged activities and definitely not potentially leading herself to her demise. 

Though if Yeosang had known where she was going before she left, he would most likely have tried to stop. Probably going to spill her plans to the Consigliere or Underboss in order to keep her from jumping headfirst into the dangers of the Kim Faction place of living. He wanted her to sit back and think first so bad, but Mari just doesn't use her brain like that. Consequences always come after her actions, so why should she be thinking about them first.

Flawed logic but that's just how Mari operated, no matter how hard she tried to change. And trust and believe she's tried to change. 

"Ms. Seo?" The driver spoke as the car began to slow down, the blurred view of the trees becoming clearer as they neared a stop. Mari immediately sat up straight with wide eyes as she scrambled over towards the window, glued to the view of the outdoors like a child. She stood up on her knees with her face pressed against the glass like a child, pure wonder and disbelief coaxing her expression as the driver spoke again. "We have arrived at your destination... this is the right place, correct?"

"I'd be damned if it wasn't..." She mumbled back in reply. Mari's manor was rather large in size before it was burned down, having the ability to house a good portion of the Seo Faction inside of it. But this? This was on another level of money. It's like she was face to face with a glass castle, shining under the sunset's light and towering over her like it was the Eiffel Tower. The lights in the house were on as well, signaling that the Kim residence was active inside for the day and Mari felt her heart drop for a moment. 

A little sting of regret was circulating through her veins as the driver turned onto their wrap around driveway, passing the garden fountain centerpiece to pull up to their front door. Hongjoong's house was much grander than Mingi's home yet seemed more expensive and larger than her old one. It was intimidating to even stand in front of the building, how was she going to navigate it on her own time?

When the Rolls Royce came to a full stop Mari cautiously opened the door to let herself out. Her steps were light and anxious like a cat, jerking away and back into the car seat at the slightest movement from the windows. Something about this place felt off despite its grand and luxurious design but she supposed that's why Hongjoong constantly ran away from it. The atmosphere was tense and threatening whether or not she was arriving in terms of a stranger or the enemy. As if there were eyes burning big and dark holes into the back of her head watching her every movement.

"This is going to be a challenge," The girl repeated from earlier as a little courage began to bubble inside of her, willing herself to walk towards the door. 

It was a large rounded iron door with stained glass to block the view of the inside of the house. It provided enough security and safety away from average strangers while adding a sort of dungeon like aura to the already intense house of horrors. Beside the door was the doorbell for her to ring so she didn't potentially hurt her fingers on the iron bars, but for some reason, it felt like the doorbell was more menacing than the iron door itself. Like pressing it would open a door under her feet and let her fall to her doom. 

"You can do this, Mari," She reminded herself, patting down the fabric of her dress as she tried to boost her overall confidence. "This was your idea, you don't have the option to back down. Get your information, have dinner with his father, leave the house. That's the plan, stick to the plan." With a deep breath and a reluctance movement of her fingers, she pressed the bell.

A long and strenuous ding echoed through the building after she pressed the doorbell, so loud that it nearly toppled Mari off of her own two feet. She had never heard a doorbell that deep and strong before, so there was absolutely no way for them to miss her arrival now. "God I regret this so much. This was the worst idea possible. I should have just listened to Yeosang and waited this out," She blurted under her breath, starting to break a sweat when she saw a figure approach the door from the inside.

Though when the door creaked open just enough for a head to peer through the crack, she let out a relieved sigh. There stood her fiery redheaded host for the night, dressing in all black formal wear in stark contrast to Mari's nearly pure white dress. "Hongjoong! Thank god you're the one that answered the door, I would have literally collapsed if I was face to face with your father, I wouldn't be able to do it." She ranted, stumbling over her words as he opened the door for her. "I mean... I would have to do it eventually but like if I'm gonna be honest he's a little scary? Like I know you know that but like all the times I've—"

"Mari," He interrupted an amused smile on his face. The girl immediately covered her mouth with her hands upon realizing what she had done. Curse this unfortunate habit of hers, having her ramble on in such nonsensical manor. Honestly, how did people even deal with her when she suddenly shot off at the mouth? Hongjoong glanced at her chosen attire before his smile grew even wider. "You look nice, aside from the fact that you decided to wear flats."

"Really?" Mari asked him, looking down at the dress she wore and completely ignoring his jab at her choice in shoes. After the masquerade party, the Seo Faction had held, she wasn't ever going to wear heels again. Either way, the girl anxiously picked at the hem of the dress with an unsatisfied huff before turning back towards him, "I don't know... I feel kinda stupid in this? I'm not very used to wearing skirts and dresses like that so I feel extremely out of place right now."

"You wear a skirt to school all of the time now, how is that any different from this?" He questioned her, closing the door behind her as Mari finally took a step inside of his home. 

"That's different, its apart of the uniform so I'll be punished if I don't wear..." She began, though trailing off once she turned her attention to her surroundings. The glass palace left her in awe once more, making her feel like she was a mere peasant who had somehow walked into the house of royalty. The floor was made of shining white marble, reflecting the image of Mari and Hongjoong in the ground while blinding lights of a chandelier hung above them. 

On both sides of the wall were marble spiral staircases that led to the upstairs floor, wood railing following suit of their path. In the middle of the room were two large pillars that surrounded the chandelier above, where the staircases met and split into two separate hallways. The pillars held up a mezzanine balcony that hung over them, giving whoever was up top a full view of everything below in this main lobby like room. "You live like this?" Mari asked him, though it was more of a rhetorical question as she continued to take in the castle-like interior.

She wished she wasn't surprised but this was nothing like Mingi's house, this was nothing like her house. To think that a place this grand held some of Hongjoong's worse memories that Mari didn't even want to try and dive into. "Yeah," He responded reluctantly, definitely not getting the same feeling of amazement as she was. "It's only been like... maybe two years since we've moved here? Though it's never really felt like home, that's why I was always at Mingi's house."

"How much money do you really have anyway?" She asked him as he began to walk up the stairs, a cheeky smile on his face as he turned back to her. 

"Enough to get me another motorcycle if I really wanted to," He responded, indirectly answering her question but not in the way she wanted him to. With an annoyed huff, Mari began climbing the stairs after him, ready to pester him with millions of questions she just needed to be answered at that moment. Sure she was in his house so that she would rather have any sort of information his father may have on Wooyoung's whereabouts but she was curious!

Did they always have giant houses like these? How did they gain enough money to even afford the place? If she disguised herself well enough could she get an internship from the Kim Faction and work for their money? Don't get her wrong, the Seo Faction has plenty of money themselves, but Hongjoong's wealth was absolutely insane. It was without a doubt that his faction rivaled the Lee Faction in terms of finances.

"Oh, look at you two! You're like two peas in a pod, little yin and yangs!" A feminine spoke behind them, interrupting their conversation to force themselves in. Mari was the first to turn around, a confused yet slightly annoyed frown donning her face and she was met face to face with an older woman. Thanks to the heels on her feet she towered over Mari without a little problem, giving her a sickly sweet smile similar to the one that Jung Chaeyeon would always wear. How they didn't hear her approach was one thing, but she did give off a level of intensity that was close to Hongjoong's father so Mari could only assume—

"Mari, this is my mother," Hongjoong quickly introduced, placing himself in between the two women very cautiously. The woman smiled at Mari with a mischievous glint in her eyes as she played with the wedding ring on her finger as if she was scanning and assessing every little piece of personality Mari offered to put on a show. The girl recalled Hongjoong calling his mother a watered-down version of his father so this would be an interesting interaction. Seeing as Mari always has interesting interactions with the boy's father.

His mother stood straight up and held her hand out for Mari to shake, the edges of her eyes crinkling as her smile grew even wider. "Mari... ah yes, I remember now! My husband has spoken of your existence before after meeting you and what a lovely girl he made you out to be! I can't believe Hongjoong tried to hide you from us, you seem like such a wonderful person."

"Oh really..." Mari replied, glancing between Hongjoong and the woman. "He's talked about me...?" She knew that Hongjoong would talk about her to his little group of friends, but his father? Somehow that felt more disturbing to her than it actually sounded. 

"Of course! You know I was rather skeptical at first, seeing as Hongjoong isn't very social with the girls I've tried to introduce him to," She explained, lamenting over her most likely several failed attempts to try and put Hongjoong and Jaerin together. "But you, I can see why he seems to have a sorta affinity for you. His father had told me you're a very strong-willed girl, a little bit of an attitude on the side but just enough to make it endearing and entertaining to watch."

Her smiled donned into a sinister grin as she took a strand of Mari's hair in her hands, rubbing her hands to feel the texture and glancing down at her appearance. "My gosh, how could I even forget? You're so very beautiful as well, who could forget that factor. Your dress, your face, your hair, everything about you makes you simply... stunning. Tell me, Mari, you must get your looks from your mother, don't you? A daughter who takes after her mother is always the best of their kind, dead or alive."

"That's enough," Hongjoong tried to intervene, but he reaction time didn't match her immediate reflexes.

Goosebumps ran marathons down her back as she grabbed a hold of the woman's wrist, her nails threatening to dig deep into her skin and draw blood. Something about his mother's words made Mari jump headfirst into survival mode, desperate to escape a situation she wanted no part in. Just the thought of that woman touching her again made her stomach twist and turn with horror and disgust, threatening to throw the girl into a sickness right where she stood. 

"My, my, what a strong grip you have there," She mused, taking her hand away from Mari. The girl dropped her grip once his mother finally moved away, the ground swaying under her feet and a lightheaded feeling aching in her mind. She didn't want that woman touching her ever again. "Are you okay, Mari? You don't look so well anymore. We don't want you passing out before dinner, do we?"

Hongjoong eyes narrowed at the woman who stood in front of them, her smiling and batting her eyes innocently back at her son. "She's fine," He responded after a few seconds of silence, holding his hand out to Mari for her to take ahold of. "Just give us a few minutes and she'll be back on her feet in no time." He lied, trying to put distance between his mother and Mari.

Her whole face lit up at the thought of the two alone and immediately waved them off. "Oh but of course! No worries, I'll leave you two alone now. Just don't be late, dinner will be ready soon and your father is dying just to speak to Mari once again. He finds you so intriguing and I can already see why!"

"Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Mari snapped, unable to keep up the fake endearment to match his mother's tone. 

"It can be if you want to," She sneered in response, a annoying smirk on her face as she dug under Mari's skin. Hongjoong's mother was like a older version of Jaerin, able to attack her where it hurts and antagonizing her until they got the reaction they wanted. Just when she thought that the Lee Faction heir was gone for good, she just had to come back in the form of woman she didn't have the ability to disrespect. Mari hated it so much that it made her blood boil. 

Though the woman laughed at her reaction, brushing aside her quick-tempered attitude and walking down the hall past them. However she stopped in her tracks to look behind her shoulder, glancing towards Mari's dress with a slight judging look. "Oh I almost forgot to tell you. Red is much more your color Mari, you should try it. Maybe next time you come around we can go shopping at boutique and find you a nice red gown just for you."

Mari took a threatening step towards the woman, a malicious gaze in her eyes that was just waiting to tear her apart. Though Hongjoong held her back, grabbing a hold of her shoulders and keeping her in place so that she didn't chase after his mother. They watched her disappear down the corridor, the tension in the atmosphere immediately dropping as soon as his mother was out of sight. "If that wasn't your mother, trust and believe that I would have punched her by now. No that's too kind of a word, I would have killed her by now."

"I would give you full permission to do so if we weren't trying to do something really dangerous right now," Hongjoong reassured her, trying to shake off the interaction as best as he possibly could. "She's only a taste of what's to come, we've got the whole night ahead of still. I hope you can keep that impatient trait of yours at bay no matter what's going to be thrown your way."

Mari snorted, regaining her normal self as she resisted the urge to crack her knuckles. "No promises. If she so dares to try and lay a finger on me one more time I'm going to go absolutely feral, and there's no stopping me then."


	45. Come Back Home

"This is a horrible idea," Hongjoong mumbled, begrudgingly following after Mari. They were a little far from the dining room now, following the red carpet flooring that was laid out across the ground in every hallway. If Mari wasn't mistaken, they should be on the third floor but the boy's house was so big that she was beginning to lose track of where exactly she was. For the most part, Hongjoong had been leading her through each room, creeping and scurrying behind the walls and doors to avoid being caught by an adult in the house. 

But he was too hesitant, too caught up in his own thoughts and worries, and too slow for Mari's liking. So she had decided to run ahead of him and follow whatever her gut told her whether it was correct or not. Sometimes it felt like she was on the track, but then she'd come face to face to another flight of stairs she thought she had climbed already. 

"Stop complaining," She snapped at him, tired of hearing the same pessimistic saying repeatedly. Mari peered around the corner of the hallway curiously, whispering her next words to Hongjoong just encase someone was there, "You had agreed to this when we were on the bottom floor and it's too late to go back on your word now."

It had only been about ten or so minutes since they had the conversation and Mari was going to hold over his head for the next several hours. The two were making their way towards the dining room after Mari had nearly lashed out at the boy's mother. She still felt nauseous at the mere thought of the woman and her blood liked to boil just recalling her voice, but she knew she had to stick it out in order to pry information about Wooyoung's whereabouts later. Yet Mari just knew if she had to stay near his mother for more than ten minutes at a time she'd explode on the spot. 

Sure, Hongjoong was there to try and conceal her barbaric tendencies, but even Wooyoung couldn't control her temper. One way or another Mari was either going to get kicked out of the house or murdered in an instant and she preferred the former. 

So on a whim, she had turned to Hongjoong and spit out whatever was on her mind first, an unplanned plan so to say. She had suggested that they sneak San into the house so that he could continue on her search just in case Mari truly did end up getting kicked out of the house and didn't have the information she needed. 

Of course, Hongjoong had immediately disagreed with the idea entirely, not wanting to risk another person's life because they were in the presence of his father. But, Mari's iron grip she somehow called "charm" was much stronger than Hongjoong's willpower to say no.

"Well... yes." He responded, unable to refute her. "But still, everything about this is just screaming this is a bad idea! Not to mention we're late for dinner with my father now. And my mother specifically said, don't be late?"

Mari tried her best not to scoff, silently rolling her eyes as she turned around to him. "What are you, the white rabbit from Alice in Wonderland?"

"Maybe," Hongjoong shrugged, cursing to himself when brushed him off and started walking down the hall once more, signaling that it was clear to begin walking again. "Listen, I'm sorry if I seem a little overbearing right now, but you really don't know what you're getting yourself into anymore. I mean, coming here in the first place was a crazy thing to do, but inviting your friend from the other faction here? Who has already been attacked and identified by the Kim Faction? Worst plan ever!"

"You nag a lot," Mari told him, not even turning around to look at him as she peered out of a window to see if she could spot San anywhere. They had to sneak the boy in from either a back door or a window for the reasons Hongjoong had just blurted to her, she just didn't know where he was. "Listen, I know you're just worried but... San is one of the best men the Seo Faction has. The only reason he's been identified and attacked is because your faction jumped and murdered my mother."

The boy jerked back, the atmosphere becoming tense with the mention of the Kim Faction's actions. Mari cursed under her breath for even bringing it up again like a physical wall was being built between the two of them. They may have "made up", but that didn't mean Hongjoong still didn't feel guilty about all the things his faction may have done to her own, the things that specifically affected Mari. "That was messed up," She immediately added on, turning around to face Hongjoong as she awkwardly played with her hands. "I didn't mean to... I just kinda..."

"No, you're fine," He told her, trying to brush off the situation as fast as he possibly could. "I mean, I don't even know why you're apologizing, it was my faction's fault which in turn made it... like... my fault so..."

One kiss and makeup moment wasn't really going to fix their problems Mari realized now. "Anyways!" She exclaimed, moving as far away from that topic as she could. Now was not the right time to twiddle their thumbs and kick at the ground because of past events. "If we can't find San we'll just go back to the dinner and continue with the original plan."

Before Hongjoong could respond he was cut off by the doorbell. It's low and long ding echoed through the hallways, bouncing off the walls like a feather but weighted heavily in their ears like a diamond earring. "Were you expecting anyone else here besides me?"

He thought about it for a moment, seemingly just as confused as Mari was. "No... I wasn't. I specifically told the guys to stay at Mingi's house until this was all over so that we could meet up with them later."

The two's eyes widened at the same time, pure panic and disbelief fueling the adrenaline running through their veins. San couldn't be that stupid... could he?

They scrambled back down the hallway in a desperate attempt to make it to the door before anyone else in the house did. "You told him not to come through the front door right?" Hongjoong tried to confirm, skidding across the carpet floor as he stopped in front of the stairs. "Please tell me you did."

"Of course I did! I'm not stupid!" She bit back, easily keeping up with him thanks to the flats she had decided to wear. Down with the heeled shoes, they had no purpose unless she wanted to step on someone's foot. "But he's Wooyoung's friend, he's my friend! He's just as brash and stupid as we are, just a little more refined than us that's all."

Mari quickly made her way down the steps, nearly leaping over half of them like a child in order to get down faster than him. She stopped when she reached the second floor, knowing that the second floor held a balcony that looked over the first floor. Hongjoong couldn't even keep up with her as she dashed towards the balcony, peering from the wall of the hallway to try and get a good look at what was going down below. She was a little unlucky this time, catching sight of the boy's father approaching the door before she could even slide down the stairs.

"Give me your phone, I need to call San again," she whispered to Hongjoong once he finally caught up to her, barely able to catch his breath as he leaned up against the wall. He didn't even catch the fact that she was talking to him. 

"Why didn't you just do that earlier?" He cursed, digging for the device in his pockets as the boy's father opened the door below them.

Thankfully, it definitely wasn't San that was standing in the door frame, but still an uninvited guest nonetheless. It was a long haired individual, older than both Mari and Hongjoong but only by a few years. In his hands he seemed to be holding a hair tie, twisting and turning it in between his fingers as the man before him greeted him with open arms. "What a lovely surprise! I wasn't expecting you to arrive here so early. Come in, come in, we have much to discuss."

"That's bad news," Hongjoong told her, placing his phone in her hands. "You want to stay away from him, and you definitely don't want him around my father while you're here." 

"Who even is that?" She questioned him as she took his phone, ready to punch in San's number and find out where the boy was hiding. 

The boy shuddered at the thought of the man who had entered the house, definitely not a good sign for Mari. "No one you want to encounter in the future. I don't talk to him much because I'm practically alienated from my family but... he's a very high positioning member in the Kim Faction. Just stay clear of him and you'll never have to deal with him. He doesn't seek out trouble unless you're specifically trying to step in his way."

Mari took note of the boy's words, not taking his warning of the man lightly. She didn't listen to a lot of what Hongjoong said, more likely to trust her gut feelings than anyone that usually wasn't Yeosang. But when it came to people on the opposing side of her faction, she had no choice but to heed his words. He knew everyone in the Kim Faction better than she could ever imagine. 

She could only imagine what kind of person that man she just saw was. Was it the secretary that would chase Hongjoong down whenever he was away from home? Another bloodthirsty Caporegime like Jung Chaeyeon? Or maybe he was the Consigliere, the advisor to the Kim Faction's terrifying leader. Whatever he was, Mari wanted no part of it.

It only took a few seconds for San to answer Mari's call, frantic and out of breath as he tried to spill out every single thing that happened to him in the last ten minutes. He just kept talking and talking without any signs of stopping, it was hard for Mari to even get a word out to snap him to attention. Though after a minute or two of just listening to the boy ramble on about something that she wasn't exactly sure about, Hongjoong had finally taken it upon himself to interrupt the boy and ask his location.

The boy on the receiving end mumbled something in response that Hongjoong nor Mari couldn't quite catch before telling them where he was hiding, along the back of the house near one of the open windows on the second floor. How he had made it all the way back there, she wasn't really sure, but San was sly and quick so it wasn't an impossible thing to imagine. That's why the Underboss liked him so much because his skill set allowed him to do nearly impossible things from every other member of the Seo Faction.

"We're nearly like ten minutes late by the way," Hongjoong made sure to note once the two had made it to the open window San had mentioned.

"Jesus Christ, you will not live that down," Mari growled back, leaning out of the window to try and catch sight of San. She waved her hand down below when she saw the boy hiding behind the well trimmed hedges that lined the walls of the house, dressed in all black in an attempt to blend in with the dark setting around him. It would have worked well had San not colored his hair beforehand, standing out like a sore thumb compared to the near pitch black and dark green foliage.

"Everything is going to be fine," She assured him," not even your own father is going to be on time. Someone is there busying him with more important matters. They have no reason to care about what two teenagers are doing."

He frowned in response, not feeling as reassured by her words as she hoped he would be. "I have no choice but to trust you at this point."

"Good, because I'm putting my whole life in your hands right now and I'm trusting you to not fuck it up," Mari smiled at him, pushing him back and away from. "Now that we know where San is, go get him. Let him know the plan and then we meet back up at the dining room in like... does three minutes sound good to you?"

"You're asking me to split from you? Right now?" Hongjoong asked her, bewildered by her sudden request. "I know I've been saying this all night, but that's a horrible idea, what if someone catches you wandering around alone?"

"I'll tell them I was looking for the bathroom and got lost," She shrugged. "Now is the perfect time for me to be snooping around Hongjoong. Your mother is nowhere to be found and your father is being occupied by someone else right now. If I don't take this chance now I won't have any other chance to do so."

"Mari," he pleaded, once again desperately trying to get her to change her mind on something. It must suck knowing she was too stubborn to say no.

"Hongjoong," She responded in the same tone, nudging him over to where San was hiding. "It's only three minutes, what could happen in three minutes?"

The expression on Hongjoong's face was all Mari needed to see. Every single bad consequence was running marathons through his head right now, leaving him even more anxious with each second to leave her alone without him by herself. Her whole reason to make him agree to do the dinner with his father was that Hongjoong had the ability to cover for her if anything went wrong. If he was beside Mari in some way, shape, or form, the repercussions of her actions wouldn't be as bad as they could be.

But now she was trying to run away from his side, disappear into the dangerous abyss that was his own home without him as a safeguard for her? He wasn't on board with the idea, and Mari wouldn't be surprised if he was even frightened of what might happen to her when he wasn't there.

"I promise," She began, holding his hands tightly in her own. "I'll be fine. Just give me three minutes and I'll come back, I won't even dare stay wherever I'll be for a second longer." 

Hongjoong looked conflicted, a million words wanting the flood out of his mouth right that second but refusing to even try and come out as coherent sentences. After a moment of pure silence, he let a deep sigh he had been holding in for who knows how long. "Three minutes. Go."

"Thank you," She quickly told him, letting go of his hands immediately running down the hallway as fast as her legs would allow her. Three minutes, the girl had three minutes to find any useful while she had the chance before she was forced to return back to the boy's side and face two of the most powerful people on the enemy side.

She didn't know exactly what she was looking for either. Clues to a possible struggle, that they may have brought Wooyoung to their home and locked him up somewhere just as the Seo Faction had done to Jongho. Maybe she'd find a document, misplaced and sitting around just waiting for some curious soul to come take a peek at whatever was inside. Anything of the sort would be useful to Mari because she knew Wooyoung would leave a clue to his whereabouts somehow. He wasn't an idiot, he would know that Mari would come chasing after his trail the moment she got the chance to.

But it had been around two or more weeks since Wooyoung's capture, the Kim Faction could have cleaned up whatever obscure clues he had left behind. They were hiding the boy and they most likely were trying to hide him well. They must have known he had some sort of connection to either the boss of the Seo Faction or Mari herself, so they were going to make sure that he was as well hidden as they could possibly make him. 

Thankfully, Mari was like a dog. Once she caught wind of anything that seemed close to information about Wooyoung, or even Jaerin, she'd follow that trail until she found what she needed or what she was looking for. 

She slowed down her pace once she began approaching a room on the very end of the hall, cautiously keeping note of her surroundings as she did so. It was on the third floor of the house, the door cracked up and a cold draft drifting out like it had been left alone for a lot longer than it was meant to be. The lights were off on the inside, so she couldn't exactly see what was in the room, but she wasn't going to pass up the chance to inspect the room while she still could. There was just... some sort of odd feeling Mari kept getting from it, something she hadn't felt from all the other rooms she had passed.

"Three minutes," she repeated to herself, though quickly shaking her head and restating her statement as she quietly pushed open the door. "More like two minutes... it took a little bit to climb those stairs and make it up here in the first place." Her hands felt around the wall as she entered the room, switching on the light after a few moments to lighten up the whole room. Mari made sure she kept the door wide open this time though, knowing that the last time she had entered a room alone left her nearly killing Hongjoong and getting her mother's ring stolen.

It was a study, the entire back wall of the room covered by two shelves of books sitting next to together. Along the other walls were photographs of the family, whether it was of just the parents who had taken photos with each other to seal the deal or with their only child who didn't seem too happy to even be in the pictures all together. Some of the pictures had a fourth person in them, unfamiliar to Mari but still held the same expression as the rest. Everyone in every frame seemed as though they weren't willing to getting their photos taken, a depressing and begrudging aura radiating off of them like heat. 

It seemed as though Hongjoong's family was never a happy one, even when he was young none of them seemed to truly care for the other. It makes sense as to why he began to rebel as he grew older. 

Sitting in the middle of the room was a small black desk, papers scattered about its surface, and nearly completely untouched. Beside them was a lamp and a picture frame that stood by it, but Mari wasn't too bothered by all the extra stuff. 

"Bingo," She cheered to herself, quickly scrambling over to the desk to take a hold of the papers. Even if they held the information she needed, there was no way she was going to be able to take all of these with her. The best she could do right now is memorize everything in front of her to the best of her ability and let San and Hongjoong know of her findings so that they could retrieve it for her.

"Wooyoung," She chanted under her breath, scanning the papers for any little details that might lead her to him. Mari flipped through the papers quickly, becoming increasingly more desperate as she continued to read through each line she caught sight of. "Wooyoung... Wooyoung... all I need is just a mention of Wooyoung and I can go."

Mari froze when she heard the door creak, her heart beating out of her chest as she listened to close. "You won't find anything here," a familiar voice told her, speaking to her softly and slowly as if she were a terrified doe. They were speaking too kindly to her for them to be an immediate threat to her, nor even daring to approach from where they stood at the door frame. "There's nothing about Wooyoung here, they wouldn't dare let a captive from the Seo Faction anywhere near their residence nor any information on him."

With confusion contorting onto her face in all sorts of ways, she slowly looked up from the papers in her hands, letting them slip from her hands as she spoke. "Seonghwa?"

"Hi," he responded, giving her an awkward wave and bracing himself for any sort of sudden outburst from her. "You look nice, by the way."

"What are you doing here?" Mari questioned him, running from behind the desk and up to him. He had confirmed that nothing about Wooyoung could be found here and that she had wasted her three minutes of searching for nothing. "Hongjoong... he said that he had told you and Mingi and Yunho to stay behind. What the hell are you doing all the way over here for?"

"You do know I'm older than him right?" Seonghwa questioned, shoving his hands into the pockets of his pants. "I don't have to listen to him if I don't want to. Plus, he worries me with stuff like this. Bringing you into this house is such a dangerous thing to do I couldn't help but come running to make sure you two were okay."

"That's really nice of you but still," She continued, knowing she was running out of time to try and search for anything else that might lead her to Wooyoung, or maybe even Jaerin. Information on Jaerin might bring her straight into the web of Wooyoung as well. "I personally think we've got everything down pack right now, so there was no need to come and save us."

"I just saved you some time from looking at a dead end," he argued, glancing over towards the mess of papers she had left behind her. "I think I'll call that a save."

She rolled her eyes at his statement, not wanting to start bickering with him for no reason. He was right, he did save her from rummaging through a ruse since she was definitely putting all her faith into the first thing she saw. "Okay, maybe you're right on this one. But if what you said is true, there is nothing I can gain from being here. That can't be true though, and I don't want it to be true. This is my only lead on where he is, they need to have the information I need or it's over for both of us."

Seonghwa nodded at her words, his lips turning into a conflicted frown as he thought about what she could do next. He didn't know much of the context of why she was so adamant about finding him, but he knew that anyone positively connected to Hongjoong needed to be assisted. "I think... I think there's a way I can help... but I'm not exactly supposed to say what..."

"Please, Seonghwa," Mari begged, taking a hold of his shirt and forcing him down to her height. "I would do anything just to see him again, please. You need to tell me what you know."

He let out a deep sigh before nodding, prying her iron gripped hands off of his shirt collar. "Fine. You just have to promise you won't tell Hongjoong I did this or that I was even here for that matter, okay? He'll have me killed if he finds out."

"I defy everything that boy tells me to do anyway." She reminded him. "He won't hear a word of this from me." With Mari sealing the promise, he took the girl by the hand and led her out of the room quickly, like rats scurrying across the floor in a hurry. Though he stopped immediately when they had exited the room, catching the girl completely off guard when she crashed straight into his side.

Just before she could curse him out for stopping so abruptly, there was a slow clapping from the other side of the hallway. A small chuckle would echo from down the hall every so often, amused by the sight that was lain in front of him. "Well, well, well... what do we have here?" An unfamiliar voice asked, stepping out of the shadows from farther down in the hall and revealing the long haired man from earlier. "And you're supposed to be hard to catch? Honestly, I have to laugh."

"Shit," Mari mumbled, taking note of the fact that they were at a dead end hallway and the man in front of them was blocking their only exit. 

"You want to know where Wooyoung is?" He asked her, playing with the hair tie as he spoke. The man thought about it for a moment letting out a content sigh as his mind seemed to strike a memory. "Ah yes... Jung Wooyoung, I know him. I remember him even, that look of pure rage in his eyes when I spoke about a man who looked awfully similar to him was unforgettable. How infuriated and riled when I mentioned how my pistol smoked when I emptied the magazine into that man's heart." 

The dots had connected in Mari's head too quickly for her liking, feeling the anger bubble up in her chest so fast that she was barely able to control herself. "I've got to get the fuck out of here," she muttered, trying to take her hand away from Seonghwa and devise a plan to escape by herself. 

Though when Seonghwa didn't let go, his grip getting even tighter on hands so that she could slip, she began to doubt her chances for survival. "Seonghwa, let go."

"You want to find Wooyoung right?" He asked her, not expecting her to answer him as he pointed towards the man that stood in front of them. Slowly, a smirk began to grow on the man's face as Seonghwa nervously finished his sentence," then he's how you find him." Before Mari even got a chance to respond, a chance to scream about how much of a backstabbing person he was, the boy sunk a syringe into her wrist, injecting whatever liquid that was inside into her bloodstream.

The needle hurt more than Mari originally thought it would be, causing her to let out a gasp of pain and drop to her knees immediately. The syringe slid out of her wrist with ease as she cradled her wrist, trying not to scream at how much it pulsed and ached in pain. Though not long after the pain had occurred, she left her whole body begun to shut down on her simultaneously, losing whatever control she had left of it and her consciousness slipping from grasp.

"You... bitch...!" she cursed at Seonghwa, just barely able to reach out and grab his ankle, trying to anchor him to her. Though the boy only shook her off him, refusing to meet her eyes and dropping the syringe to the ground like it was contaminated. "I trusted you."

"I'm sorry, Mari," He responded, but nothing else came out of his mouth. That puny apology wasn't going to quench the amount of hatred that was boiling inside of her. 

"Chaeyeon said it would be hard to capture you," the man told her, shaking his head in disapproval as he approached her nearly limp body. He crouched down to where she laid on the ground, a smile growing on his lips at the burning glare in her fluttering eyes. "But I think she just wasn't smart enough to do so. Conquer and divide is the way to go when you're dealing with teenagers. Because once you're all alone, there's no one to save you anymore."


	46. His Kiss, The Riot

"Why do you trust me?" San asked Hongjoong, a curious glimmer in the boy's eyes as he did so. "I mean, I am the enemy after all and you openly welcomed me into your house. We're alone and there's no one to stop me from killing you right now."

It took the Kim faction heir a moment to respond, not expecting that sort of question to come out of his mouth. "Because you're Mari's friend," Hongjoong answered him, peering down the hallway they were in to make sure no one saw them. If anyone from his faction caught San on the premise they'd immediately switch into attack mode and try to kill him, and he wasn't looking for any blood on his hands right now. "Anyone who is a friend of Mari's, I can trust. No matter how... odd they seem."

After making sure the hallway was clear, he urged the Seo Faction member to follow him. If he just made it to his room before anyone could catch them, then he could successfully hide San until Mari returned. Sure, the whole reason he was here in the first place was to help them search for clues on Wooyoung's whereabouts but he just didn't feel safe with San wandering around his home alone. There were only so many people who would listen to Hongjoong if he tried to distract them on his own, it was too much of a risky move to try and proceed with the plan without Mari.

"Why do you trust Mari?" San ended up asking him as the two stopped at the staircase that led to the upper floors. Hongjoong turned towards the rival faction boy with a skeptical face, unsure as to why he was asking such strange questions. He smiled at the Kim Faction heir, his face turning catlike as he continued to speak. "You trust me because you trust Mari, so there's got to be a reason you're putting so much faith into her. You even agreed to bring me straight to the heart of the Kim Faction, there's so much damage I could cause just by being here."

Hongjoong stood in silence for a moment, his brain turning its gears into a desperate attempt to find an answer that would satisfy San's desires. Though when he couldn't come up with a response fast enough, he laughed at him. "You trust her because you like her, right?"

Reluctantly, he nodded. 

"Both of you are so weird, you know that?" He asked Hongjoong, skipping past him like a rabbit and stepping up the stairs. "I know I was the one who encouraged Mari to set up this plan of having dinner with your dad and all, but in reality? I really don't trust you. Neither of you has any reason to trust each other either. You're the heir to the Kim Faction and tried to kill her and she's the heir to the Seo Faction and lied to you, but look at you now! Putting your lives into each other's hands without second guessing, you're crazy."

"I know Mari has no reason to trust me as much as she is right now," Hongjoong admitted, fidgeting with his hands as he began to pick up the pace to catch up with him. "But why don't you trust me?"

San hummed to himself, musing about all the memories that Kim Faction heir couldn't even think to recall. "Your faction tried to murder me alongside Mari's mother and I was the only one to survive the attack. Your faction set the Utopia on fire and almost trapped all of my friends inside a burning building. You attacked our home base and would have murdered Mari without thinking anything of it had you two not been called out by Jaerin. Oh, and I can't forget all of the trouble you caused Wooyoung who had been hopelessly pinning after that girl since he was a child."

"Oh," the boy trailed off, unable to properly respond to San's reasonings. "Those are some really good reasons to be untrusting."

"I know right?" He commented as the two reached the third floor of the house. "I've been sitting in shallow anger for months now and now I've got the perfect chance to get reparations. All I need to do is push," San told him, turning and imitating the motion of him pushing a person down the very long stairs. "And all my worry will be over within the blink of an eye."

"You're kinda scary, you know that?" Hongjoong asked him, almost scoffing at the boy's actions as he moved past him.

San smiled at his words, turning on his heel to follow him. "I'm the devil of the Seo Faction for a reason. I just choose to be friendly to those who happen to have their goals intertwine with my own."

"Your own goals?" 

"I'm here because I want to save my friend. Wooyoung is Mari's childhood friend, but he's also my closest friend in the Seo Faction." He told him, shrugging softly as he explained himself. "It gets lonely without him, I won't lie. I miss his bad sarcasm and his petty arguments with Mari, but I'm also worried about him. He's a very strong willed person, he would go to hell and back in a eternal loop if it meant keeping the Kim Faction away from the people he cared about."

"Is that why he pointed a gun at me when we first met?" Hongjoong joked, a small smile growing on his face as San smiled back.

"Probably! He's a very eccentric person, that's why we like him so much."

The more Hongjoong spoke to San, the more comfortable he got with him. Which was funny seeing as though the boy had threatened to kill him multiple times over the last minute or so. That's probably just how he worked, how he gained curious friends like Mari and Wooyoung back at his faction. Though, Hongjoong couldn't judge him much. He was in love with Mari and the boy had his own gang of curious people on his side.

"Second room on the left, that's where my room is," He instructed. "Go in there and please stay in there until Mari comes back. Once she returns, we'll let you run free and cover for you as best as we possibly can. It shouldn't take long, it's been about three minutes so she'll be back any second."

"No," San declined, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he looked from the room's door to Hongjoong. "That's boring, I don't want to wait in there. Let me come with you!"

"Are all of you this stubborn?" Hongjoong mumbled to himself, recalling the times Mari flat out refused to heed his warning. "San, if someone catches you, they'll kill you. Mari's got special permission straight from my father to even be standing in the building. You snuck in here per Mari's requests."

"I don't think you know what you're dealing with," San told him, standing firmly in place so that he couldn't be moved. "You've got one of the best soldiers from the Seo Faction with you right now, dare I say I'm shooting even higher than a soldier. You don't need to worry about me, I can handle myself when I'm getting attacked by myself."

"Go," Hongjoong grumbled, opening the door and trying to force the boy inside. "In the room. It's for your safety."

"I don't need protection!" San complained, clinging to the door frame like a cat trying to escape the water. "And sitting around and waiting for people is boring! I'm not going to go in!"

"San!" He hissed.

"Hongjoong!" The other boy yelled even louder.

Though it seemed as though the two boys were causing a bit more of a commotion than anticipated. "Hongjoong?" A familiar feminine voice spoke. The sudden distraction made San's grip on the door frame weak, giving the boy a small time frame to shove the Seo Faction member into his room and close the door behind him. With a deep sigh of relief, he turned around to face the person in front of him before sucking the relief back into his body immediately. 

"Mother?" He questioned, pressing his back against the door and clutching into the doorknob as if his life depended on it. How long had she been there? Had she caught sight of San? Did she hear him arguing with San beforehand? "What are you... what are you doing here?"

"I've been looking all over for you!" She exclaimed, reaching out a hand to latch onto Hongjoong and pull him away. "Did you not listen to me when I said do not be late to dinner? We haven't had dinner as a family in years and you invite a girl over for the first time in months, yet you go and ruin it by being late!"

"Does it really matter?" He asked her, snatching his arm away from her in retaliation. 

She gasped at his response, refraining from putting her hands on him as she tried to explain herself. "Of course this matters, your father put aside his very busy schedule just for you! Mari, that peculiar girl, I was looking forward to getting to know her better. She seemed like such a dear, don't tell me you went and chased her away already!" Something was off about his mother he could already tell that much. Her curiosity of Mari seemed as though it was turning into an odd obsession and once his mother became obsessed with something, she'd never let it go. 

"Mari isn't a dog that'll run away with its tail between its legs," Hongjoong defended, an annoyed glare beginning to fester in his face. 

"Then why isn't she with you?" His mother asked him. "You two were attached by the hip earlier and now she's nowhere to be seen? You must have chased her away, just like you've chased all the ones before her!"

"Is there something you want from me?" Hongjoong snapped, his head aching at the number of questions San would probably have for him. There was no way he wasn't hearing the conversation between the family members. "If it's Mari you want so badly, I'll have to send her back home as soon as I can. I won't let her become another... another weird obsession of yours."

"No!" The woman yelled, her voice echoing across the hallways in an ominous tone. Any average person would have flinched at the amount of wrath and power she bellowed in one word, but this was his mother. Hongjoong was used to it. After a moment of silence between the two, she cleared her throat before speaking. "I mean... you shouldn't make your guest leave on an empty stomach. Let us have dinner first and then she may go home. I'll feel bad if we don't feed the poor child while she's here."

"Mari has her own home where her father takes care of her, you know that right?" He reminded her. "She's not sickly looking, she doesn't look starved, and someone is waiting for her to return."

"Ah yes, of course, a father." She nodded, though her voice sprinkled with spite and bitterness," but nothing beats the warm feeling of a mother, don't you agree?"

Hongjoong stared at the woman for a moment, his brain going to work as his mind started to race. Something is wrong, and his mother was distracting him to keep the thread loose. "What did you do to Mari?" 

His mother smiled at him, placing her hands on his shoulders as she spoke to him. "Oh Hongjoong, you have such peculiar taste in women. But dare I say, I think you've reeled in the best one yet, a useful one too. You're such a good son, much better than the other one."

It was as if something in Hongjoong had been hit as if he got a bullet straight into the heart without any sort of warning. After a dazed moment of disbelief, he shoved the woman off him, making sure there was a good distance between him and his mother so that she couldn't touch him again. "I'm going to ask one more time, what did you do to Mari?"

"The Underboss went to greet her," his father explained, his condescending yet familiar smile burning holes into the boy's skin. The man chuckled at Hongjoong's look of despair, finding it more endearing than anything. "He couldn't wait to meet her personally after hearing and searching for her for almost... a month or so now? He was excited even, I've never seen such childlike glee on that man's face until now."

Hongjoong's heart dropped to the bottom of his stomach, his mind immediately blanking out and hitting the emergency button. "No."

"Yes!" He exclaimed, his smile too wide to be that of a saint's. "Even unknowingly you do your job so well. Thank you, Hongjoong, for leading the Seo Faction's daughter straight to me. I always knew you were the talented one when your brother was still alive and you continue to prove yourself even when you've estranged yourself from us! What is it you want as a reward? That motorcycle of yours is getting rather old, isn't it? I can get a new one from you, imported straight from a foreign country!"

"I want you to let go of Mari," Hongjoong demanded as adrenaline began to pump in his brain, attempting to cloud his thoughts as he tried to keep himself from breaking down right in front of them. The words were just flying out of his mouth now, not even taking a moment to think about its consequences. "I want you to stop talking about my brother, I just want you to stop!"

"Unfortunately, I cannot do that for you," his father responded, a wicked smirk growing on his face as he placed a hand on Hongjoong's shoulder with a vice-grip like strength. "How about you think a little longer on what you want as a reward?"

"No," He hissed, prying the man's hands off his shoulder as his eyes blazed with pure rage. "Let her go or I'll make you."

His father tsked in response, unsatisfied with the answer he had gotten. With a hard shove, he sent Hongjoong crashing into the door of his bedroom, the thud from his back colliding with the wood much louder than anticipated. Like an angry dog, he had forced himself to shake off the small aching pain, ready to make a run for it in between the two parents and find Mari on his own. Though the man pressed his foot against the boy's chest, putting a majority of his weight on it and watching Hongjoong struggle beneath him.

"You will stay here while we take her away for more... important business," He threatened, the commanding and savage undertones of his voice coming out on full blast. "You will stay here and not interfere with our matters any longer. Your job here is done, Kim Hongjoong. If I catch word of you escaping and running to find a way to snatch her back, I will not hesitate to kill you. Just as you did not hesitate to kill your brother."

"That's because you made me do that!" He argued, struggling to push the man off of him as footsteps could be heard climbing the stairs. "You forced me— you manipulated me into killing him! I won't let you hurt them, I promise you I'll be the one to kill you if Mari even ends up with a scratch on her head."

His father laughed at Hongjoong weak attempts at threatening him while his wife turned her head away, becoming blind to the scenario that played out in front of her. "Young love! So exhilarating, so fascinating! So much fun to take advantage of!" The man yelled, taking his foot off of the boy as the soldiers of his faction marched up the stairs at the beck and call of his father. 

The boy scrambled to his feet as he tried to pinpoint the weak points within the men. He needed to slip out of the house as quickly as he possibly could but the soldiers were blocking his only exit from the upstairs and San was still in his room hiding away from the situation he had found himself in. "Shit."

"Keep this boy in this house," His father told his men, a glint of mockery in his eyes as he looked down on Hongjoong. "Lock him in the room and do not let him out until I say otherwise. Do not dare to have me set my eyes on him again."


	47. Checkmate

"I don't know why I imagined you to be... much older than you are when I first heard of you." The Underboss spoke, a glint of interest in his eyes as he watched Mari cautiously. Despite being much older than her and probably a lot more confident in his abilities, he refused to let his guard down around her. 

If Mari escaped at any given moment he'd be in very big trouble with his higher-ups so letting his guard down with Mari wasn't even possible. Good for him, being cautious of the consequences but it's not like Mari had any idea of how to escape in the first place. "Does the Seo Faction use child soldiers?" The man questioned her, pondering at how the inner workings of the Seo Faction must work compared to his own. "How unethical."

"I don't think you really have a say on that sort of thing," Mari answered him, a frown on her face as she sat in the back of the room she had been kept in. She didn't know exactly how long she had been in the room, but it couldn't have been any longer than around two days or so at most. She was still dressed in the same white dress she had worn to the Kim Faction residence yet it wasn't stained with filth like the rest of the cold and dark room.

"Aren't you a part of the faction that's got a literal group of assassins and one of them is still a teenage boy?"

"Four of them," He corrected her with a shrug. It took a moment for it to click in her head, the feeling of dread washing over her like a tidal wave for a moment. It was safe to assume that the other three members of that group were Seonghwa, Mingi, and Yunho. There was no one else close to Hongjoong that could be used as leverage over both of them. "Touché, though, I guess we all can't be perfect. Teenagers are just so much more... impressionable and controllable than grown adults don't you think?"

She narrowed her eyes at the Underboss, unable to truly respond to his question. She didn't even know if she wanted to respond to him in the first place, but all Mari was good for at the moment was talking. "I guess we are, huh."

If only Mari could move from the spot she had been stationed in, bound to the ground of the room with a chain pulling at her ankles and her hands stuck together with handcuffs tightly wrapped around her wrists. She probably would have scratched the Underboss's eyes out with her nails if she could approach him. Mari wondered if Jaerin had told them of her horrific temper when she was still around, maybe that's why they had limited her movement to only five feet away from anyone else.

It was a good idea on the Kim Faction's part, restricting her that was. All Mari needed was a muzzle and spiked dog collar and she'd look exactly like one of those dogs everyone labeled as dangerous and aggressive. What could she say? Mari just had a lot of pent up anger that she would let explode at any given moment if she could.

Though, the only thing Mari could do at the moment was talk. Talk just like she always had when she was forced into these kidnapped scenarios, this current one wasn't all that different from when she was snatched up by the old Underboss of the Kim Faction. There were some differences, but for the most part, it was the same. Minus the fact that she had no backup to come to recuse if she was being threatened with death. 

All she had to do was use her words, use her charms to either stall whatever plans that her enemies had or simply get on their nerves enough to set herself free. Usually, it was the latter and Mari found enough enjoyment in that simple aspect. But the current Kim Faction Underboss? He wasn't annoyed at all, in fact, he was enjoying her company and small talk much more than she had originally anticipated. It wasn't the goal, but anything to preserve her life for as long as she possibly could so that Hongjoong or San could find where she was and help her escape.

But... not even Mari knew exactly where she was. All she remembered after Seonghwa had boldly betrayed her and turned her into the enemy was that she had been injected with some sort of drug that made her pass out while she was at the Kim residence. Mari had no memory of the trip to wherever she was being held, and she only remembered waking up in the same room she was being kept in now. 

"Where are we?" Mari asked after a moment of silence, playing with the jingling chain of her shackles as she spoke. A bold question to ask as if the Underboss was going to give away such information, but she decided to try anyway. Maybe he was an inexperienced Underboss?

The man didn't answer her right away and the girl felt her breath hitch at his sudden hesitation. He looked as though he was truly contemplating on whether or not it was a good idea to reveal the location they were currently in. Mari's hands fell to her lap, crossing her fingers out of sight and silently begging whatever divine being there was above to grant her wishes. Though he shrugged his shoulders after a moment of thinking to himself and responded to her. 

"Why would I tell you that?" The Underboss asked, and Mari cursed to herself. Of course, it wasn't going to work, but at least she knew now there was a chance for her to sway his decisions. All Mari needed to do was make conversation and soon she'd find a breakaway for freedom. "All you need to know is that we weren't stupid enough to make our base of operations in the home of our godfather after all."

"To be fair, we didn't think you'd actually find us one day. It was a worse case scenario type thing," Mari chuckled, though she was talking to herself more than anything. "Both factions are generations in the making, after all, the thought always crossed the mind but never was a big enough problem to pay attention to."

"Unfortunate," He told her, crouching down to her height and digging around in his pockets. Mari instinctively tried to move away, her back pressing into the stone cold wall and leaving her nowhere to run. Though the Underboss pulled out a few photos the darkness of the room made it hard for her to see exactly what had been printed on them. With a mischievous grin, he looked from the photos and back to Mark before asking, "Tell me, are you a daddy's girl?"

"I don't consider myself one and wouldn't want to be," She answered him, confused as to why that was the question he decided to ask.

"Maybe you should have been one before you had gotten yourself caught," The Underboss explained, taking one photo out of his small set and putting in front of her. Cautiously she raised her hands to grab what he had presented to her, the chain jingling across the floor as she shifted around to get a better look at the photo. She was stunned for a moment, unable to say the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

"What..." She choked, her grip around the photos tightening as her voice grew hot with anger. "What the fuck is this?"

"They are pictures," The Underboss told her, his tone mocking as he snatched up the set of photos away from her. "Well, pictures of your Godfather's wife begging for her life before my men shot a bullet straight through her chest." He clarified, forming a finger gun with one hand and pointing it straight towards Mari. The man closed one eye and put one hand under his fist as if he were holding a real pistol, getting ready to pull his make-believe trigger once his fingernails aligned right with Mari's chest.

"Oh, and pictures of you. Knocked out cold on the nice floors of the Kim Residence and a needle wound right on the wrist," He finished off, a smug smile stretching across his face as he lowered his hands. "We take nice pictures here in the Kim Faction, don't you think?"

"Give those to me," Mari demanded, standing up on her knees and holding out her cuffed hands towards him. There was an indescribable fire in her eyes as she glared daggers straight into the Underboss's soul, a million emotions running through her brain, and none of them something she wanted to focus on. "Give those to me right now!"

The Underboss laughed, a hearty and taunting laugh that made the girl's blood burn with pure wrath. "And why would I do that?" He asked her, simply taking a few steps away from her so that the chain attached to her could resist her from coming any closer. "Do you not like the way I took them? Should I go dig up that woman's grave and take a picture of her decaying corpse? Want me to take a new picture of you in the state you're in now?"

"I said to give those to you, you bitch!" She cursed, desperately reaching her hands out towards him as she tried to force the chain around her legs to stretch out further. But the metal chain stayed in its place, successfully keeping her held back from the Underboss and practically growling at him like a dog. "Give it."

"No," He denied her, waving the photos out of her reach. "I think these are just perfect to send to Seo Faction's Godfather! Just imagine the amount of anger that bubbles up inside of him when he sees a picture of his wife on her dying breathe? And then the amount of despair and fear that replaces it once he sees a picture of his daughter vulnerable and out of his sight. He won't know how to act after that."

"You're using me as a ransom, you're trying to draw him here." Mari realized, her eyes widening with every word that comes out of her mouth. "That's sick as fuck."

"And when he comes to save his daughter, as I will ask that of him," The Underboss continued, completely ignoring the death glares that Mari was sending his way. "We'll kill him. Murder him the moment he takes a step towards you and make sure he never rises again. The Seo Faction cannot function without its pillar, its prime leader! And it cannot take so many losses back to back, they'll be forced to surrender to the Kim Faction, just as they should have long ago. Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"Fuck you!" Mari screamed, throwing a tantrum in the little space she had to herself. "Once I get out of here, I'll kill you. I'll kill you for hurting my friends and family. Do you hear me, you bastard? I'll kill you and anyone who tries to stop me!"

The Underboss laughed at her outburst, walking towards the door that kept the two locked inside the room together. "Are you sure you wanna do that though?" He asked her, turning his head to her with a mischievous smirk. "Your friend worked so hard to keep you alive this long though. Threatening to kill me will simply make me break his promise."

Her friend? "Wooyoung," Mari mumbled, immediately dropping everything to stare at the Kim Faction's Underboss. "Wooyoung? Where's Wooyoung, what did you do to him?"

"What did I do to him?" The Underboss asked, thinking to himself for a second. "I didn't do anything to him. We simply struck a deal with each other, and I can't break my promises. I've never broken a promise."

A look of terror overtook her face as the Underboss opened the door, revealing one of the Kim Faction soldiers carrying an exhausted looking Wooyoung in his arms, practically manhandling the boy as he struggled to himself upright. "Surprise," The Underboss smiled, "I'm keeping my end of the deal."

"Wooyoung," Mari breathed, unable to truly get the words she wanted to say out of her mouth.

The boy gave her a meek smile, a hint of desperation and brokenness she had never seen in him glint in his eyes. "Mari."

With a sudden shove, Wooyoung was thrown into the same room as Mari and the door closed behind them. Before the two could even react, their only means of escaping the dark room was locked in nearly an instant, leaving them trapped but together this time. The Underboss had made his exit out of the room as well, which meant no more questioning and conversation with the person closest to the Kim Faction's boss. But that wasn't Mari's main problem at the moment anymore.

"Wooyoung, what happened?" Mari asked him, urging him to come closer since she went as far as the chain would let her go. The boy seemed... smaller than before. 

His frame was much thinner than she remembered him being and he looked tired, beaten to the bone even. Not to mention the awfully bright red rings around his wrists and just a few scars on his face as that she could immediately see. She was surprised that he was still even awake from the shape that he was in.

She had only been snatched by the Kim Faction for what felt like a few days, but Wooyoung? he spent weeks alone with the Kim Faction. Who knows what they had done to him while he was here?

"You know I'm in love with you, right?" The boy asked her with a trembling voice, ignoring her first question as he scrambled over to where she sat. 

"Unfortunately I do," Mari nodded in response, unsure of how to continue the conversation topic. "But should we really be worrying about that right now? You're injured, you're weak, Wooyoung."

"Good," He spoke, ignoring her once again. "That's all I need to know." Wooyoung grabbed the chain of the cuffs and forced Mari to him, crashing his lips on hers with such a sense of desperation that it nearly overpowered Mari completely. Despite how fast he came in, Wooyoung was surprisingly soft. He handled Mari like she was Fine China, going to break at the slightest hint of toughness within his fingers. 

Wooyoung's grip on the chain tightened as he pulled away, almost as if he was resisting any other sort of temptation that wanted to overcome him. Mari stuttered for a moment, unsure of how to respond or how to react. "Wooyoung? What...? Why did you...? Right now..."

"I know this is not the ideal place to kiss you," He told her, saying whatever was coming to his brain first. "And I know I shouldn't be kissing you... because you like Hongjoong. But I've fucked up, Mari. I've fucked up because I can't get over you and they used it against me, I'm sorry. Jesus, I'm so sorry Mari."

The girl was still recovering from the sudden affection, trying to hide the very evident burning of her ears and the flushing of her cheeks. Mari could barely make direct eye contact with him, how was she going to keep a straight face throughout the rest of the conversation? "What did... what did you do, Wooyoung?"

"I made a deal with Jaebum, the Underboss of the Kim Faction. He wanted to lure both you and boss to him together, and he was going to slaughter both of you right where you stood without hesitation." He explained, fumbling with his hands to distract himself from the words coming out of his mouth. 

"But then he realized I was fond of you. He realized that even though I said I'd let you go, I couldn't. So we struck a deal, that he wouldn't kill you if I gave him the information he needed to successfully lure the boss to him."

"And you did?" Mari managed to croak out, her eyes beginning to brim with tears. "Wooyoung please tell me—"

"I had no other choice," He stressed, guilt twisting his face as he spoke. "There was no other opinion for me to take, and I wasn't just going to let them kill you. I couldn't live with that feeling if I just let you die." 

"You're fucking kidding me," Mari cursed, letting her head hang low to hide the pure terror and fright that had crossed her face. Wooyoung had saved her from a future death but at the cost of her father, the only paternal figure she had left. Can she save her father in time if she escapes away from the Kim Faction? Can she even save Wooyoung and herself when she doesn't even know where she is? "God fucking dammit!"


	48. Balthasar

They had a plan, but it wasn't a very good plan. It wasn't the safest plan either, but it was the best plan that San could think of. 

The boy stood beside the door frame, cramming his body in between the wall and the nearly squeaky clean dresser behind him. Once he was hidden well enough between the door and the dresser, Hongjoong slammed his fist on it as loudly and powerfully as he could, making enough noise so that he couldn't be completely ignored by those outside. 

San braced himself as the Kim Faction heir stepped back, watching as the door handle twisted and turned from the outside. Whoever had answered his calls were going to open the door.

The door swung open and a man appeared on the other side. San would have gotten a good look at the stranger had they not opened the door so wide as fast, slamming the door right into his body without care. The boy was forced to conceal his yelp of pain, not wanting to be found out by any of the other members of the Kim Faction that he was there. It was hard though, the door hit him square in the face and he ached as the pain rippled through the rest of his body. The amount of unnecessary force the man had used was incredible.

"Jinyoung?" Hongjoong questioned, confusion evident in his voice as he tried to make sense of the situation he was in. San cautiously peered from around the corner, attempting to keep himself as hidden as possible but also trying to see who he was talking to. 

The person standing in front of him glancing around curiously, taking in the almost untouched room with fascination glinting in his eyes. He was rather tall, practically towering over both Hongjoong and San like he was a skyscraper, but he seemed weak in a physical sense. He had long and lanky limbs and, despite his height, his figure was a little thin and small. It wouldn't take much for San to quickly overpower him if need be.

After a few moments of silence, an airy chuckle filled the air. "You've been in here for a few hours now and it still doesn't look like you lived in here." He commented, in awe of his unusual surroundings. San took a gander over to the side of the stranger— Jinyoung, Hongjoong called him. Another person was standing beside him, closer to the door than Jinyoung. It must have been the person who opened the door with an unnecessary amount of strength, it had to be as they were standing next to the tall boy with a tough and serious exterior. 

Their hand was constantly grazing over their belt and San quickly glanced down to notice that a holster was attached to it. They were armed with a gun, so San may have a harder time trying to disarm them when all he had was his arms and legs for defense. 

"What are you doing here?" Hongjoong asked after a moment, hopefully keeping all attention on him instead of the hidden Seo Faction member. "Shouldn't you be... I don't know... snooping around someone's government files? Running around with illegally obtained legal documents on people's lives?"

"I have people who do that for me, I'm just the head of the department, you know that." Jinyoung laughed again, Hongjoong's jab going right over his head. Listening to the Kim Faction heir's description of the boy's job though, it's a very likely factor that Jinyoung played a part in Wooyoung's kidnapping. He seemed to handle the more sensitive information on people so he wouldn't doubt it if that were the case. "Actually I'm here per your father's request but I couldn't help but hear you calling and no one answering so I came to see what you were making the fuss about."

"Oh about that," Hongjoong mumbled, getting ready to lie straight through his teeth with the quickly devised excuse that the two to of them had come up with. "You know... I've been locked up in this room for a couple of hours now and no one has even thought about the fact that I might have to go to the bathroom. And now, I have to go. Like, now."

San and Hongjoong were not the best duos when it came to using their brains and creating lies. Hongjoong had told him it was his friend Yunho who could easily lie without anyone second-guessing him, he usually just took his puppy friend's advice and ran with it. San? He was just way too honest to make up a coherent lie for his situation, San wore his heart on his sleeve most of the time after all.

"We can't do that," the man beside Jinyoung quickly interjected, not even giving the other boy time to respond. "It was the Godfather's orders to keep him locked within his room until told otherwise. Letting him out to roam would be a direct disregard of the Godfather."

"It's the bathroom," Hongjoong insisted, disbelief crossing his face at the soldier's words. "What am I going to do in the bathroom, escape through the sink drain?"

"He's got a fair point, there's no way for him to escape the bathroom," Jinyoung commented to the man, siding with the Kim Faction heir and San had to withhold a snicker. "We'll take him since the Godfather said he cannot roam the halls. If he's seen by my side then the number of questions we'll get won't be too much, plus the fact that I have more authority over everyone here right now."

"Thank you!" The boy exclaimed, putting on his best show as the door opened a little wider and allowed him to slip through. Jinyoung and Hongjoong began to walk ahead of the soldier and San, not even taking notice of the Seo Faction member who was within the walls. He grinned to himself as the man before tried to close the door to the boy's room, stopped by San who took a tight hold on the doorknob and propped it open for himself. He could only imagine the amount of confusion that was on the soldier's face as an annoyed grunt came from the other side of the door, accompanied by an aggressive pull to shut the door fully.

Though San had enough strength to keep the door in place, wrestling with the soldier to lead him away from Jinyoung and Hongjoong. After a few seconds of tugging at the stubborn door, the soldier finally let go and entered Hongjoong's room. San moved back into his hiding spot in a rush as the soldier looked about the room, irritation, and skepticism hardening his expression. 

"Psst, hey mister," San whispered, watching as the soldier whirled around towards him. The boy moved the door back and forth slowly, imitating the fight for the door they had just a few seconds before. "I think if you actually closed the door slowly instead of trying to slam it closed, you wouldn't have struggled so much. You know you can jam a door like that."

The soldier's eyes widened as he reached for the gun within its holster, recognizing San's face almost immediately after he stopped talking. "You!" He growled, completely red in the face with anger. "You were supposed to be dead months ago! How did you even get here?"

When the muzzle of the pistol was pointing towards his chest, the soldier's finger just hovering for a few seconds over the trigger, San's hands snaked up to his wrist and pointed the gun towards the ceiling instead of his body. "Oh no, we can't have that," the Seo Faction boy told him, shaking his head at the soldier's action. 

In a moment of shock from his assault, the soldier accidentally pulled the trigger, shooting a bullet into the ceiling and alerting anyone who was nearby. "Shit," the boy mumbled underneath his breath, twisting the soldier's arm to loosen his grip on the weapon and snatch it out of his hands. 

Jinyoung and Hongjoong weren't that far away right now, so he could only hope that the Kim Faction heir distracted the boy enough to keep them away from where San was. But that didn't count for any of the possible soldiers who may have heard the gunshot though. With a surge of newfound energy for his advantage in the scenario, the soldier barreled towards San, tackling him to the ground with a heavy thud and the gun falling out of his hands. 

The Seo Faction boy struggled to shove him off, the mere size and bodyweight of the soldier overwhelming him. "You just had to go and cause problems for us, didn't you?" He frowned, trapped between the soldier and the ground. The enemy reached for the pistol just out of San's reach, trying to use the weapon as the final piece to ending his life. Though a smirk grew across the boy's face as the soldier reached over him, the amount of space he was limited to expanding and giving him enough wiggle room. 

He rolled out from under the soldier, using a free hand to topple him over like a tortoise on its back. The gun in the soldier's hand slipped out of his grasp as San stepped over the soldier in an attempt to escape through the doorway. As much as he would love to drag on a fight, he had more important things to do like escape the Kim Faction residence before anyone else found out he was there.

Just as San was about to run out of the room he tumbled to the ground, hitting the ground with a now lighter thud that earlier. He turned his head to glance behind him and found the Kim Faction soldier, holding into his ankle with a tight grip. He tugged on his leg and tried to pull San back towards him, refusing to let him go scot-free.

"God, can't you see I'm trying to let you live here? Do you not have anything to live for?" He complained as grabbed a hold of the door frame, holding onto it tightly so that the soldier couldn't pull the boy towards him anymore.

"I live for the Godfather and the Godfather only," The soldier hissed, his undying loyalty reminding San of cultish behavior. 

"Fine then," the boy huffed, grabbing the pistol since it was closer to him than it was the soldier. "Then die on that hill." It took a few moments for him to finally register what was happening until it was too late, a gunshot resonating within the room and echoing down the hallways a second time. The soldier gasped as the bullet lodged itself within his body, blood slowly beginning to pour out of the wound that had been created and spilling onto the nice carpet of Hongjoong's room. 

San didn't hesitate any longer than he already had, lifting himself off the ground and dashing through the door as fast as he could. There was no way no one didn't catch that second gunshot, happening nearly back to back with the first. Someone was going to come to inspect what was happening and report it back to the boss of the Kim Faction, and San did not want to be there to see what would happen.

"Hongjoong!" He hissed, looking around the hallway desperately for the redheaded boy. He couldn't have gone far, it hadn't even been five minutes since he left San by himself. "Hongjoong, where did you go?"

"In here," a reply echoed, making San stop in his tracks and turn around. In a room to his left was the familiar red hair of Hongjoong peering out of the door, cautiously looking in between San and the hallway they were in. After a few seconds, he urged the boy inside, opening the door a little wider for him so that he could enter. 

"Where did you go? What about— holy shit!" He yelled as he walked in, Hongjoong covered his mouth to muffle his shouts and closed the door behind them.

On the ground lay Jinyoung, the boy who had so generously let Hongjoong out of his room despite the orders of the Godfather saying otherwise. He was sprawled out on the ground and collapsed, flying off in the world of dreams and unaware of anything that was happening under his watch. San knew that Jinyoung was still alive because he saw that his chest was still rising and falling, not stagnant, unlike the soldier San had ended beforehand. 

"How did you...?" San questioned, having to withhold a laugh that wanted to escape his mouth when Hongjoong picked up a rather heavy looking book.

"Swing it like a baseball bat right for the head," He explained, demonstrating exactly what he did on thin air. "The book will knock 'em down, and the fall will knock 'em out."

The two quieted themselves when footsteps could be heard outside, a group of people probably rushing straight towards Hongjoong's room after hearing the gunshots from earlier. The two of them stayed silent as they listened for muffled voices on the other side of the wall, complaining about the body that had been and yelling for the missing Kim Faction heir. 

"What do we do now?" San questioned him, keeping his voice as low as he possibly could. "We got out of the room, but sneaking out is going to be more of a problem now because I was forced to cause a ruckus. They'll be searching for you now."

"Escape as quickly as we can, that's all we can do right now," He shrugged. "I called my friend, Mingi, to come pick us up since using my motorcycle would draw too much attention towards us, so all we can do is wait for him to arrive and not get caught in the process."

"And what about Mari?" San questioned, recalling the conversation that he and his father had while San was unknowingly trapped in the boy's room. "Your father... he said your Underboss has her. What are we going to—"

"I don't know!" He snapped, clearly not physically ready for that conversation. "I didn't know where your friend Wooyoung was and I have no clue where in the world they'd take Mari. Right now I just need to group up with friends and you need to group with your people so we can figure out what to do about this."

"I can't just group up with my people Hongjoong," San argued. "You know what the Kim Faction did to us, you were there when it happened. We aren't strong enough to fight back for Kim Faction for Mari, we'll be crushed in the process and everything up until then will be in vain."

"Oh, right," Hongjoong breathed, guilt practically radiating off of his body. 

San frowned at the sight of his dejection, unsure of how to lift his spirits and make him see the bright side of things— as if there was a bright side at all that is. "Well... I know someone? He's got sliver of authority in the Seo Faction despite being around our age so maybe we can do something with that? I don't know how he'll help, but he's smart enough to think of a plan. He's the smartest one out of all of us."

"If you think he can help," The boy agreed, slowly opening the door to peer out and check to see if anyone else was still in the hallways. "Then I'll take whatever help he can give."

He opened the door a little wider and began to step out of the room, checking once more to see if any soldiers were still in the area. Though after a moment he turned towards San and urged him to come out, finding it clear enough for both of them to roam about the third floor of the Kim residence. 

They knew they couldn't just run to the first floor and run out the front doors, they were most likely being guarded by soldiers at the beck and call of Hongjoong's father. Every door to the Kim residence was most likely being guarded by a soldier in the instance of the boy escaping, which he had. They didn't have very many options to choose from to leave the house so they were stuck simply running around the house dodging soldiers who were searching for them and waiting for Mingi to arrive.

That was... until San had an idea. Not a very good idea, but Hongjoong didn't have any room to say no at the moment. 

Through the second floor window was his plan, a stupid plan, but a plan in general. They couldn't use the front door, they couldn't use the back door, and one could only pray that their balcony (if they had one, San wasn't paying attention) wasn't being heavily guarded as well. So what better option did they have then go through the window? They wouldn't completely jump through it; they would simply open it up and then climb down from there. It was only the second floor if they fell it wouldn't hurt too bad, sure they'd suffer some injuries but it wouldn't be enough to completely immobilize them.

Hongjoong protested his decision immediately, not wanting to risk getting caught by the soldiers while hanging from the window. But he couldn't think of any better options than San's suggestion so that's what they went with.

Luckily there was enough foliage at the bottom to soften in their fall so in San's eyes this wasn't a very bad idea. They didn't even get caught despite the two boys yelling at the top of their lungs when San lost his grip and pulled both him and Hongjoong down to the ground. 

"Is everyone in your faction like this?" The boy complained, rubbing his back to soothe the aching pain he endured from the fall.

"No," San answered, picking leaves out of his hair and clothes. "It's just me, Mari, and Wooyoung."

"I think I hate the way that makes perfect sense," Hongjoong replied, lifting himself off of the ground to check their surroundings. It seems as though the soldiers didn't take into account that the boy might've tried to escape to the window which, frankly, he wouldn't have thought of either if it wasn't for San. So there was no one around the perimeter of the house to catch them at the moment.

"Let's keep moving," Hongjoong insisted, "Once they realize I'm not in the house anymore that's site checking the outdoors. Hopefully, by then Mingi will be here in a few minutes to pick us up and take us to a safer location for the time being, probably his house."

San nodded his head in understanding, rising to his feet to follow wherever Hongjoong was going to take him. "Aye, aye captain. I'll call Yeosang once we get there then. I think it'll be better if he comes to us since a group of Kim Faction members on temporary Seo Faction Territory could result in complete disaster."

Without wasting any more time, the two begin to traverse around the house. Despite no one being out there with them they were still being as quiet as possible to not bring attention to themselves. They moved within in the shadows cast upon the house to keep themselves hidden. After a few minutes of cautious walking and pausing at even the slightest of movements the two made it to the front of the Kim residence. And luckily for them, there was a car out front, a very familiar car to the redheaded boy standing in front of San.

It wasn't like the familiar Rolls-Royces he'd seen driving in and out of Seo Faction territory. It looked expensive but was still inconspicuous enough to bring close to the Kim Faction residence. "Mingi!" Hongjoong called, waving his hands in the air to catch the boy's attention.

The car door on the driver seat popped open and out appeared another redhead that San had never seen. He was much taller than both of the boys combined and despite the clear show of money in the car he drove, he was dressed in a very cheap looking black hoodie and a pair of glasses. In SAN's opinion, he kinda looked like a nerd. Though he didn't express those opinions out loud as the faded redheaded boy— Mingi was his name he had to remember— urged them to quickly get into the backseat.

"Yunho is waiting back at my place, holding down the fort just in case someone came by and asked for you when I wasn't there," He explained as the two approached. "But why didn't you tell me that Seonghwa was here too?"

"He's what?" Hongjoong asked as he slid into the backseat, San following after him. The two settled into the car when they both looked up, and there in the passenger seat was the boy Mingi had mentioned just a few seconds ago. "Seonghwa?"

The said boy didn't look up when his name was called, all he did was nervously play with his hands and keep his eyes in his lap. San could already tell that there was a guiltiness radiating off of him that he simply couldn't contain. He tried to but his emotions were getting the best of him and refused to hide. As Mingi put the car into drive, slamming his foot on the gas pedal to speed away from the house, Hongjoong continued to pester Seonghwa. 

"What are you doing here?" Hongjoong questioned him. "I had told you all to wait at Mingi's House while me and Mari were dealing with things at my house. When did you even get here?"

"He never came," Mingi exposed, glancing back towards San and Hongjoong through the rearview mirror. "Yunho had arrived not long after you called and told us what you were doing, but Seonghwa? He never even showed up so I assumed that he was with you but seeing the situation we're in now... I see that he wasn't."

The tension within the car began to grow at an alarming rate as everyone's eyes were stuck on the silent boy in the passenger seat. If Seonghwa hadn't gone to Mingi's house and waited as told, then without a doubt he was most likely at Hongjoong's house. But if he was there then he would've had the ability to save Mari from her kidnapping and/or help Hongjoong and San escape. "Seonghwa," Hongjoong spoke, "What were you doing at my house? be honest with me while I have this limited space to move and potentially not hurt you if need be."

"I fucked up," he told them. "I fucked up and I didn't have a choice to not do so. I'm sorry, I didn't want to but—"

"What did you do," San demanded, now he was heated as Hongjoong was. "I advise you to choose your words carefully because I don't have as much patience as I look like I do."

"I was going to Mingi's house as you told us to. I was almost there, I was on my way!" Seonghwa explained. "But while I was going there I was stopped because the Underboss came up to me. I don't know how he found me, I don't know if he even knew where exactly I was going, but he stopped me and we talked. He said because I was under his authority because I was in the group of his men, I was bound to his authority and I had to do it he said. Which is true I have to do what he says."

There was a moment of silence between them all, Mingi's gaze shifting between all three boys within the rearview mirror. "He ordered me to go to the Kim residence because you and Mari would be there and then he told me to find her and lead her to him. I told him no, I even made the excuse that I was busy which in a sense I was. But he threatened me and said that if I didn't then I'd pay the price for disregarding an authority's orders."

Seonghwa turned in his seat to look at Hongjoong, his guilty expression on his face now on full display. "Which would result in something happening to you."

"So you traded Mari for Hongjoong's safety," San pieced together. "You were the reason she was caught by the Kim Faction Underboss."

"How could you?!" Hongjoong exclaimed, needing to be physically held back by San so he wouldn't cause Mingi to crash the car. "Why would you do that? You knew they were searching for her, I told you they were searching for her when I found out who she actually was! And you still turned her in, you were the reason she was caught in the first place?"

"I had no choice!" Seonghwa yelled at him. "If I didn't do that then something would happen to you, and honestly I'm closer to you than I am to Mari. So it all makes sense in my head at the time. I know I fucked up and I feel horrible about it but it's not like I had any other choice!"

"I could care less about what happens to me," the redhead tried to make him understand. "They could kill me for all I care, it doesn't matter about what happens to me. But you just put Mari in such extreme danger and I have no clue how to get her out of it!"

"Hongjoong, think for just a second will you?" Seonghwa pleaded. "You're being blinded by this lovesick notion you're in right now. What about all the people who care about you? You can't just pretend like you don't matter to other people because you're in love with her, come on!"

"Okay, this is getting heated," Mingi mumbled, before glancing at both Seonghwa and Hongjoong through the rearview mirror. "Listen we can fight about this all day long, just not in my car? This is not exactly the right place for the two of you to be fist fighting each other. let's just put this on the back burner and sit in silence until we get to my house, okay? Then I'll let you two go at it." 

"I agree," San piped up. "I really don't care about the drama you guys are having right now but I'm kind of on a mission to save my friends and if you two are just going to argue the entire time I'll figure this out on my own."

With the semi scolding that both San and Mingi had given them, the two went silent. They sulked back into their seats with glaring eyes at each other before turning their heads forward and staying silent for the entire car ride to Mingi's house. They kept their emotions bottled up inside them until they arrived at their destination, and San could only imagine the type of explosion that would happen afterward. 

Whatever was happening between the two of them, San just hoped that once he called Yeosang to his aid he'd be able to fix their problems just as he does for Mari. He had to be able to fix their problems because he was going to be the one to create a plan to save Mari from the hands of the Kim Faction Godfather and Underboss.


	49. One Step Forward

When she had arrived the chains that kept her screwed to the floor were loose. Not by very much, but the fact still stood, the chain was loose. She hadn't noticed a few days into her capture, but she noticed it nonetheless.

Mari would stand up off of the ground when no one was around and tug at the chain with as much strength as she could muster. The more she would fumble with the chain she could catch just the smallest sight of the nails rising from their position in the metal. Though the girl knew that this process would be slow and draining, repeatedly yanking the chain for what sometimes felt like hours before dropping the action immediately when she heard someone coming. 

Once she was no longer restrained, her likelihood of escaping would become just a little higher. 

Though it was hard trying to perform this task, especially when she was so godawfully exhausted. The Underboss would enter the room at the most irregular hours and keep her up for interrogation to try and force her to spill where the Seo Faction was currently hiding. She wouldn't give him the answers he wanted, rambling on and on about unimportant matters irritating him with her unruly behavior. 

Mari suffered the price for not giving the Kim Faction what they wanted, but they couldn't kill her. The Underboss made a promise to Wooyoung and even if he betrayed the boy he had to keep her alive for their master plan to murder her father.

"Fuck," Mari mumbled, staggering to the ground as she held tightly onto her wrists. There was a nasty looking bruise ringing around her arm, getting worse by the day as she aggressively pulled at the chains and the shackles scratched up against it. Usually, she wouldn't be so bothered by such a minor injury, but she hadn't had a full meal to build her physical strength back up. Not to mention the mental toll her mind had taken from her rather unique kidnapping circumstances. 

"Ah that's gonna leave a mark after it heals," she mumbled, letting the chain fall limp in her hands as she took a moment to recover from her fumble. Mari couldn't help but wonder, how many more times did she have to pull on this chain till it finally broke free? So that she could stretch her legs and walk around the room as she ached to do so? She swore that at this point she might forget how to walk entirely.

She had to hold out though, tightly gripping onto the hope that someone would come and save her and Wooyoung. There was such a small chance of the two of them escaping by themselves, she had no choice but to rely mostly on the people she had surrounded herself with.

They must have noticed she was gone by now right? They had to know she was gone by now, someone was going to be worried and would come to get the two teenagers. 

But the last time anyone needed any saving was when Wooyoung was in this place by himself, even Mari's constant begging couldn't make the faction move their feet to find him. Because they were weak and couldn't fight the Kim Faction at the moment according to Yeosang? So what made her think they would jump to their feet and come charging after her?

"Hongjoong, you bastard," She cursed, almost laughing as she mumbled a calling to the Kim Faction heir. Mari couldn't believe herself honestly, putting her faith in the hands of the son no one cared to listen to once again. "Please, for the love of God, come get me. I can't believe you're my only hope again."

When was the last time she had called upon Hongjoong to save her? When Chaeyeon was deathly close to kidnapping her after her fight with Wooyoung? He had come in riding in his black motorbike like a race car driver, skidding across the asphalt and extending his hand out to her so that they could make their quick getaway. Oh what she wouldn't kill for that to happen again, so she could just fall and collapse in his arms so she could finally rest from her unfortunate nights. 

Mari shook her head at the thought, erasing her brain of any more useless thoughts. She couldn't rely on him completely for the girl didn't even know if he would be able to meet her halfway. Mari had to be the one to take the leap of faith and she would pray that he'd catch her.

"Come on, Mari," She told herself, trying to get a little bit of energy back as she stood back up again. The girl shot a worried glance toward bruises on her wrist, unsure of how she was going to continue knowing she was irritating the wound but she'd shoulder past it. If only Mari had a little bit of her strength back, she'd be able to move without the wound bothering her as much as it did now.

"One... two..." Mari mumbled, grabbing a hold of the chain that she had dropped to the ground. She tightened her grip around the metal chain, mentally preparing herself for her muscles to scream at her in exhaustion and for the bruise to spike her body with irritating pain. "Three—!"

"Princess?"

It's pathetic how fast the girl turned around, all actions she was trying to do dropped completely and her chest bubbling up with so many emotions she was going to explode. Mari wanted to scream, she wanted to cry, she wanted to let out every single emotion she had forced herself to contain in her kidnapping right then and there. But her heart sank to the bottom of her stomach, probably boiling in its acidic liquid and falling to her knees at the sight.

"That's what he called you, right?" Chaeyeon questioned, leaning up against the door frame and swinging the keys in her hand. The keys to what exactly? Mari didn't know. But she couldn't help but stare at its rotation around her finger, the jingling of her keys ringing loud in her ears as she watched. Chaeyeon laughed after a moment, noticing how mesmerized and desperately the Seo Faction girl was looking at the object in her hand.

"I learned that when we had that Lee Jaerin girl come in and give us all the juicy details on your faction," The Consigliere told her. The woman pushed herself off of the wall and walked toward Mari as she continued to speak, a whimsical look in her eyes as she reminisced on an event that took place only weeks ago. "She said that the Godfather's boy called you... princess. What a good name, fit for someone of your status might I add."

She stopped in front of Mari, holding onto the keys in a tight fist. "Princess... I like the sound of that. Princess, princess, princess! What a cute little nickname!"

"What do you want?" Mari snapped, her eyes wide with anger just hearing the woman's voice. "You come to interrogate me? I thought your Underboss would have told you I'm not talking, I won't give you a pinch of what I know."

Chaeyeon's eyes glinted with annoyance, rolling her eyes at the girl's quick aggressiveness. "Still got the attitude, do you? In this situation even?"

"My entire personality is my attitude," she grinned, though it was more like she was baring her teeth like an animal. "If you don't like it, too bad. You're stuck with it."

Chaeyeon scrunched her nose up at the thought, assumably not liking the sound of Mari constantly ridiculing and back talking to her. It was a very fortunate part of the girl's personality that seemed to stick with her no matter the situation she was in. Always catching an attitude with her enemies and bothering them until they decided she wasn't worth their time.

Though instead of giving the girl some sort of condescending and conniving response back, she crouched down to be at the same level as Mari. The keys in Chaeyeon's hands jingled as she put them behind her back, tilting her head to the side so that she could get a good look at the girl's face entirely. "The Underboss sent me here to question you, you were right. But this time, you've got a little bit of an advantage in this situation, hm? It'll be a win-win for everyone if you just... do as I say."

Mari rolled her eyes at the thought, even daring as to scout herself back and away from Chaeyeon. Like the Consigliere would actually try to do something within her favor. She was their prisoner, their ransom for the Seo Faction boss. That was simply not how things worked out.

"Listen here you little prick," She cursed, snatching a fist full of the girl's hair and forcing her to come closer. Mari yelped at the sudden tug, a headache beginning to brew inside of her head as a sharp pain shot through her scalp and to the rest of her body. In a sense, this was payback for the time the Seo Faction girl had pulled on the Consigliere's hair, but didn't the woman do it right back to her that same night? "I'm being very generous with you right, so I suggest you take my offer before I treat you like Jaebum does."

"In your dreams!" She winced, reaching out her hands and grabbing the shiny skull pendant that hung down from her neck. Thanks to her sudden adrenaline rush Mari pulled down as hard as possible on the necklace, the metal chain digging into the woman's skin deep enough to at least cause an irritating wave of pain to wave over her body. Chaeyeon quickly let go of Mari, taking several steps back and away from the feral like child and rubbing her neck to try and soothe the aches.

The girl smirked as she leaned back, a haughty smile appearing on her face as she listened to the woman grumble and groan over Mari's pure audacity. She was rather defiant for someone whose whole world was on the line. Chaeyeon shot the girl a furious glare, frustration bubbling so high within her that was caught within her throat and refusing to let her speak. The woman was going to pop a vein at this point, her mind racing of all the things she wanted to do to Mari but couldn't because of the orders she had been given by the Underboss and Godfather.

"I advise you watch your words and you watch your actions," She hissed, finally composing herself enough to look the Seo Faction girl in the eyes. "You may be safe from any harm but someone else is going to suffer the consequences for your actions."

"You wouldn't dare—" Mari growled, sitting up straight at the mention of Wooyoung.

"I would!" Chaeyeon interrupted, spinning the keys around her finger again. Mari was entranced by its movement once again, her brain conjuring up fantasies where she could snatch them away from the woman and make a run for it. Though she was pulling back into reality when the Consigliere spoke. "I mean, why else would we have snatched him up instead of you first? That boy is very crucial to getting you to talk... well, him and the Godfather's son. So you really don't have the luxury of keeping your mouth shut if you like them so much."

"God, you're the devil," the girl cursed as Chaeyeon laughed. The woman was a little too amused by her responses and reactions to everything that came out of her mouth. 

"You have two options," the Consigliere told her. "You either tell me all the information I want about the Seo Faction's whereabouts and plans, or you sit there groveling at my feet and beg that your friend only gets a slap on the wrist for your uncooperative attitude. Tell me, which one would you like to do?"

Mari thought about it for a moment, weighing the severity of the situation in her head before looking back up at Chaeyeon. "I pick... you taking me out of these chains and letting me scratch your eyes out like a cat! Doesn't that sound like a fun game to you?" The girl answered, a mischievous smile on her face as she held up her wrist and let them jingle as a sigh of temptation. 

Chaeyeon, completely red in the face with anger, stomped up to the girl in a rush of adrenaline, snatching her arm and pulling her close. Mari winced at the action, the bruise on her wrist becoming even more irritated than it originally was. "This is a win-win situation, princess," the woman tried to convince her, digging her nails into Mari's skin. "Just give me the information I want and you and your friend won't get hurt. Doesn't that sound like a good deal to you?"

"Stop," Mari responded, trying to pry the woman's hands off of her. Her voice was barely over a whisper, grimacing as she struggled to force Chaeyeon off of her. "You're going to draw blood, fuck, stop it!"

"Tell me where your Faction is hiding then," The woman insisted, digging her nails even deeper into her skin. A small shriek escaped Mari's mouth, biting her tongue almost immediately after in an attempt to quell any other noise that wanted to leave her mouth. Chaeyeon let go of her after a moment, watching as she dropped to her knees and pressed her free hand tightly onto the new pulsing red wounds that dripped with blood. The woman had held onto Mari so tightly that her nails broke the skin and made her bleed. 

Chaeyeon snorted at the wounds, rolling her eyes at Mari's reaction as she spoke again. "If you had just told me where your faction—"

"Piss off!" The girl yelled, a wild look in her eyes as she cut off Chaeyeon. The woman quieted down almost immediately, not expecting her to bounce back to her snappy attitude so quickly. 

"You just refuse to break, don't you?" Chaeyeon huffed, disbelief overcoming her as she watched the girl calm herself down. "Jaebum was right about you... damn, I wish he hadn't made that promise to that kid. I would have gotten you to at least crack by now! This man is testing my patience by not letting me hurt you the way I want to."

"What part of the words 'piss' and 'off' do you not understand?" Mari snapped, glaring down Chaeyeon with a serious side eye. "Do I have to define it for you? Put it in simpler terms? Here, fuck off!"

"Watch your mouth, princess," Chaeyeon hissed, slowly backing up towards the door. "You've already gotten on my nerves but I promise you, the punishment for not cooperating with us will make you wish you would have just given me the answers I wanted. I promise you that, it'll be worse than any death sentence in this world."

Mari waited till she heard the door shut for her to turn around, finding Chaeyeon had left the room with her keys in hand at last. She deeply exhaled a mix of relief and irritation crossing her face. She had forgotten how much of an annoyance that woman was, the last time she had come face to face with her was after the Utopia when she tried to kidnap Mari herself. It seemed as though she had gotten more confident in herself, creating a more ruthless persona than she had expected from her. 

She shook her head from any more thoughts, biting her lip as she stood up and wiped off the excess blood that was spilling out of the puncture wounds Chaeyeon had made. "One step forward, all I need is one step forward and everything will fall into place," Mari convinced herself, grabbing a hold of the chain once more now that there was no one to interrupt her. 

The girl counted silently in her head, psyching herself up before giving the chain one aggressive pull, pouring her frustrations into the palm of her hands and hoping that was enough strength to make the chain snap from the ground. 

After a minute or so she smiled, slumping to the ground and catching her breath. Her hands were pulsing an angry red from how hard she had pressed her palms into the chain and her bruise wasn't exactly pleasant to look at anymore. But Mari was content with the progress she had made for the day, allowing herself to finally sit back against the stone cold wall and take a much needed breather.

"One step forward," Mari chanted, holding the broken chain in her hands and mindlessly swinging it softly to and fro. It snapped off of the ground and now she was free to roam. Who knew all she needed was for Chaeyeon to make her mad and it would give her all the strength she needed to free herself? "One step forward and everything is going to fall into place."


	50. Whatever It Takes

"I have a question for you," Mari spoke, glancing up at the boy that stood in front of her. Yeosang stared back with his usual stone cold eyes, not a lick of emotion swirling in his irises. It was almost as if he had locked them deep away within his chest and thrown away the key in an attempt to keep himself closed off to others, but she knew that wasn't the case. How could it be, when she was aware of the fact that this was truly not the Yeosang she knew.

The Greek statue she called a friend hadn't spoken to her in weeks, given the fact that she was currently kidnapped and they had fought before the whole situation went down in the first place. "Why do you keep appearing in my dreams? It's always the nightmares, too."

The boy thought about it for a second, contemplating on how exactly he would answer her. "I don't know."

"Are you saying I don't know because you want to," Mari questioned, a weak smile growing on her face as she stared at the dream-state Yeosang, "or are you saying that because I'm the one who doesn't know?"

In that instance, he smiled, not the childish and amused one he'd give her for a statement like that, but a smile nonetheless. For her sake, Mari decided it was probably the latter that was the answer since dreaming state Yeosang most likely didn't have complete control over his thoughts. He was simply a mix of her known knowledge and unconscious thoughts, used as a visual depiction of her dreams trying to warn her of whatever dangers lie ahead. 

A small laugh escaped her mouth as she registered the smile on his face, "this isn't a nightmare, I've just been sitting in the void with you for several minutes. I see no dead bodies of my friends, no Jaerin for me to scream at. So why are you here, Yeosang?"

He finally gave her an answer, a small yet decent answer. "Because you're running out of time and you're giving up on yourself."

"Am I dying?" Mari quickly interrupted, standing up to her full height in an instant. "I know I haven't really eaten anything for a week or two but I thought humans could survive at least a month before they finally clock out of existence. I can't die here, that'll just make everything easier for the Kim Faction and I live to spite them for fun!"

Yeosang rolled his eyes, trying his best to keep a straight face as a sigh of annoyance left his mouth. "You're not dying," he reassured you, "have you listened to what I've been saying this entire time?"

Mari sheepishly smiled at him, nervously scratching the back of her neck as she responded, "no not really. I've kinda been... preoccupied with other stuff? You're just a figment of my subconscious, you'd know I wasn't paying attention to literally any of that nonsense you spoke about."

The boy's eyes narrowed as he slowly nodded his head, "I see this now."

"How about instead of you being cryptic, you just go ahead and tell me exactly what you meant anyway? I think that would benefit me a lot more in the long run." She almost couldn't believe it, she could even get on real life Yeosang and subconscious Yeosang nerves. 

"Who do you care for more," Yeosang asked, completely switching from the topic beforehand. Of course, the boy wasn't going to give her a straight answer, when was her brain ever going to give her an answer that was useful instead of the stupid ideas that had to lead up to this situation? "Wooyoung or Hongjoong?"

"This question again," she huffed, fainting recalling a dream similar to this one. "Do I have to choose between them? They're both people I care about, it's evil to make me choose."

"It's a little too late to be asking that question," the boy shrugged. He held out his hand and revealed the recurring motif of the lock and key necklace in his palms. The charms were rusted and covered with dried blood, a sight that Mari was a little more numb to than she had hoped. She looked back up at him to try and get a hint of her mind's intention in his eyes but ultimately didn't receive any of the answers she wanted. "Now pick. Lock? Or key? Hongjoong? Or Wooyoung?"

"Right now?"

"Right now." He repeated. Was this the decision her mind had been alluding to for the past several months? If it was, it was a lot more anticlimactic than she would have thought it was. The girl leaned back to examine the piece of jewelry in his hands, having a small debate within her mind (how ironic) about what to do. After a moment to herself, she reluctantly nodded. 

"Okay then," Mari sat up straight, cautiously hovering her hands over the charms with a skeptical look on her face. Having brushed past such an oddly important subject like this only gave her so much time to think over her decisions. It didn't help that she normally just did whatever her mind told her first, jumping to action instead of looking over the consequences. But this time it included both Wooyoung and Hongjoong, and she was a bit tired of her actions negatively affecting them. "I'll choose this one then."

After a few moments, Mari was thrown right back into the dreary environment she had escaped from. She almost didn't want to get off of the ground, laying there for a moment longer to try and cling to the peaceful drowsiness of her sleep. She was so full of her original energy in her dreams, but waking up to reality had weighed all of her exhaustion back into her.

Mari was so tired, she was starting to lose track of time. How long had she locked away in the room for now? What time of day was it outside? She couldn't tell, and frankly, she thought she was going to lose her mind.

She had successfully snapped the chain that kept her to the ground but that didn't mean she got it off completely. The bulk of it was still attached to her ankle and without a key, she shouldn't simply slide it off of her like a ring. So Mari was like a ring of bells, jingling with every step she took and causing a lot more noise than she originally planned. The girl would have tried to take the chain off but all that strength she had from breaking herself free from the ground was gone. 

Mari was tired, and she met whoever might come to get her halfway already. She didn't even care if it was Hongjoong or her father or anyone who would come to her rescue anymore. There was no step she could take on her own that would help the predicament she was in. Unless her wildly realistic dream of Yeosang could change anything, she was stuck with what she had.

So most of her days were spent lying on the ground, glazing in and out of reality in an attempt to get any sort of sleep. She wasn't granted the time to be alone with Chaeyeon and the Underboss of the Kim Faction constantly switching between who was going to question her or not. Their constant pestering and aggravated actions would force Mari awake, bringing out that little sliver of pride she had left. 

Mari was so tired, she had no clue how much longer she could keep up the act. Her brave face and short temperament were slowly withering away the more exhausted she became. The only reason the girl hadn't completely clocked out of consciousness was that she forced herself to remember Wooyoung was in the same situation. He's been in this situation a lot longer than she has. 

The boy spent two or more weeks with the Kim Faction before Mari could even come to find him thanks to not only her grievances but the Seo Faction's as well. Whatever hellish torture he had put up with before their enemy could even dream of putting their hands on her was worse than what she was enduring now. Pulling out now would probably make Mari seem more like a coward than anything.

Or maybe she was just a little stubborn for her liking in this scenario, that was always an option as well.

The muffled sound of jingling keys stirred her awake from her light sleep, internally rolling her eyes at the thought of Jaebeom or Chaeyeon coming to interrogate her again. When would they finally get tired of coming in to try and squeeze any sort of information they could from her? The only thing they had gotten from Mari so far was her spitting in their face or making some sort of snarky remark to their words.

One would think they'd finally give up on her, deeming Mari as a wasted effort since she wouldn't give them what they wanted. The only thing the Seo Faction could provide them with was her presence in order to lure her father to them and that's all she would do for them. She wasn't even willingly doing it for them either, but you can't control how someone reacts to your literal kidnapping.

"Aren't you sick of coming in here to talk to me?" Mari questioned, shifting her head slightly to look over her shoulder as the door creaked open. When she didn't receive an immediate answer, she continued to speak. "I sure am sick of you coming here to talk to me..."

Even after her small jab, she wasn't receiving an answer. Skeptical, she unwillingly pushed herself off the ground, the handcuffs around her wrist clanging together as she slouched up against the wall like a prison inmate. When Mari turned her eyes up towards the person in question, there stood Jaebeom fiddling with a hair tie in one hand and holding the door open in the other. The Underboss didn't speak once Mari made eye contact with him, only looking down on her with an annoyed glint in his iris. 

"No questions today?" Mari asked him.

"You have a visitor," The Underboss explained, saying the words through clenched teeth and his fist tightening against the door handle. It looked like someone wasn't too happy about giving Mari a visitor or he didn't seem to enjoy the visitor's presence in general. Though it was probably both giving the circumstances. 

"I don't want visitors though," The girl complained, narrowing her eyes at Jaebeom, "your visitors are always people who want to fight me."

"That's too bad," he shrugged. The man glanced behind him, calling something out of whoever had come to interrogate her next. She didn't quite catch what he said, but Mari did catch the Underboss's face twist with irritation at the response he had received. If the Kim Faction man didn't tolerate the company of Mari's visitor, how was she going to handle being in a room alone with them? 

Mari may be exhausted but pushing the right buttons would make the girl go wild! Especially now that she had freed herself from being chained to the ground, who knows what Mari would do in an angered and delirious state?

The Underboss stepped out of the way as he held the door open, rolling his eyes as he called out for both Mari and her visitor. "You've got fifteen minutes maximum, make it count." Without another word the stranger walked into the room, heels clicking against the cold dirty floor and a condescending giggle echoing against the walls. This was probably the worst decision that Jaebeom could have made to date for Mari's sanity.

"Jaerin," Mari inhaled, taking in the girl's presence. This was the first time she had seen her since the attack on Seo Manor and according to one of the Underboss's men, they were supposed to kill her. Yet here she was, standing above Mari with a nasty smile on her face and playing with the jewelry that adorned her fingers. Funny enough, her mother's ring wasn't among them. "I thought you were dead."

"You thought wrong," Jaerin shrugged, slowly crouching down to Mari's height. "My my... isn't this a sight for sore eyes though? Someone finally put a leash on the dog."

She did not have the energy to get into a catfight with Jaerin, she barely had enough energy to keep herself awake during the day! Who knew when Mari's sharp tongue and attitude would finally give out on her and give the Lee Faction girl the satisfaction she had been reaching for. 

"Where did you go?" Mari demanded after a second, the cuffs around her wrists jingling as she sat up to show at least a little display of strength. "I was told you were supposed to die that day at the Seo Manor, and then you disappeared where no one could find you. Then suddenly, you're here? With the enemy again?"

"Enemy?" Jaerin repeated. "They were never my enemy, they were just pawns in a game of chest I was playing. They've captured the queen and knight pieces for me and all that's left is snag the king and it'll be game over."

"That makes absolutely no sense," Mari told her, not even trying to process what Jaerin meant correctly. 

Why bother when everything that came out of that girl's mouth sounded like utter chaos and idiocy? She'd like to keep the brain cells she had left instead of losing them to the broken gears of Lee Jaerin's words. "Where did you go after the Seo Manor attack and why are you here? I mean, you're definitely not here to give me back my ring, after all, you don't even have it with you. That being said I kinda don't want to do any business with you."

"Your ring?" Jaerin questioned, trying to recall what exactly Mari meant. Watching the girl feign ignorance to her misdeeds. Just looking at her face made Mari's blood boil, if Jaerin did absolutely anything to her mother's ring she'd choke her out right then and there without any warning. "Oh! The snake ring, right? Lovely piece of metal it was, but I threw it away. You didn't uphold your part of the deal, Hongjoong didn't die."

Mari nearly jumped from where she sat, all of the energy she had lost throughout the days she was stuck with the Kim Faction members coming back in a flash. The girl grabbed a hold of the shirt Jaerin was wearing and nearly shoved her to the ground, her body trembling as she growled at the Lee Faction girl. "You're lying," she insisted, "you're lying! Where is my mother's ring? Where is it!"

"Do you see it on me?" Jaerin laughed, holding up her hands to show off all of the sparkly accessories she adorned. "I don't have it anymore, it was a waste of time to even take that thing from you when you didn't even care about it as much as you did for Hongjoong? So why bother keeping it if you wouldn't do anything for it?"

Mari completely blocked out the girl's voice from her ears, trying not to come onto the brink of tears as her anger continued to grow. Oh, how she wanted to end the girl's life right then and there. The only piece of her life back at the manor, the only piece of her mother that had been able to survive the attack on the Seo Manor, was gone because of Jaerin's disdain for her. Did she even have any morals at this point? It sure didn't seem like it to Mari.

"You're so sick," she managed to say, fighting past every single intrusive thought that was swirling within her mind. Mari only pressed Jaerin down to the ground even harder, her grip on the girl's shirt intensifying as spoke, "you're the worst person I've ever met. All of this over some boy who doesn't like you back? You're pathetic."

"The moment I learned you were the heir to the Seo Faction—" Jaerin explained, pushing Mari off of her so that there would be a good bit of space between the two of them. Now that she knew Mari wasn't tied down to anything, she didn't want to be anywhere near her. "—it wasn't about just liking the same guy anymore."

That seemed to tip Mari over the edge, a piece of her sanity that kept her from making irrational decisions snapped in her mind. "Tell me who you gave the ring to and I might try to resist the urge to kill you," the girl explained, the chain that jingled against the cuffs beginning to look like it would be nice jewelry around her neck. After all, Mari could make anything a weapon if she tried hard enough. 

"You're going to die in the next few days, Seo Mari, don't you know already?" Jaerin insisted, trying to put up a front despite looking rather horrified at the thought of dying because of her sheer will to get back at the Lee Faction girl. "Your father took the bait, he's coming to try and save you and when he does the both of you will die. Why would you need that thing when you're going to meet your mother together, hm?"

Mari's spirits shattered upon hearing those words come out of Jaerin's mouth. Her father had accepted the ransom that the Kim Faction had given him to come to get her? That couldn't be right, he wouldn't do that knowing the dangers he'd face if he even dared to step anywhere near the Kim Faction. Even then, Jaebeom had promised Wooyoung nothing would happen to her, but she didn't put it past him not to break a promise. "You're lying, you always lie to get me worked up."

"I'm not," She smiled, "you and your father are going to die, Mari. I win!"

Just before the two could get into a catfight, before Mari could wrap her arms around the girl's neck and watch her take her last breath, the door opened. She immediately scrambled away from Jaerin in fear that it might be Chaeyeon or Jaebeom coming, not wanting them to discover that the Seo Faction girl had somewhat escaped her bonds. Both of them turned to the door expectantly, a smug smirk growing across Jaerin's face at Mari's submissiveness. 

"Hello? Is this the right room?" A voice questioned, the familiar moon crescent eyes of San peering through the crack in the door. Both Jaerin and Mari's faces twisted with utter confusion at the boy's presence as he finally registered what exactly was going on before nodding his head. "I see you're busy, I'll come back later then."

"Don't just open the door and pretend like you didn't see me!" Mari screamed, her voice cracking and her body feeling as though it was going to give out at the sight of the boy. Out of all the people who decided to meet her halfway, it was San.

"How did you even get here?" Jaerin grimaced, the situation settling within her mind at San's sudden appearance. The boy closed the door hastily as the girl ran toward it, trying to keep Jaerin from running to the other Kim Faction members about his presence. Mari would have tried to stop her, but she was a little busy being grateful over the fact that San even attempted to save her. 

He was the one who encouraged Mari to go find Wooyoung after all, so it seemed like their little trio just kept following each other one by one.

Jaerin swung the door as quickly as she could, searching for wherever San had snuck off to get evidence of his presence. Though she was only met with the grinning sight of her fellow Lee Faction member, innocently waving one hand at her with a baseball bat in the other. "What—?"

"Long time no see! Are you looking for someone?" Jongho asked her, properly taking a hold of the baseball bat he brought with him. "I'm sure I can point you in the right direction." 

With one swift and heavy swing, Jaerin was out like a light. Mari had no idea how much strength the boy had poured into it, but it had to be a lot. The girl fell to the ground like a brick and made no sound of pain when she collapsed. She couldn't help but realize it was probably the right idea that Mari had decided to get on Jongho's good side instead of immediately accusing him of crimes he didn't commit. 

"Mari!" San's voice echoed against the walls as he entered the room, pushing past Jongho completely and running toward her. He skidded onto his knees as he took a good look at her face, making sure she wasn't severely injured before a deep sigh exited his mouth. "I'm so glad you're okay! I'm sorry we took so long, we would have come faster if we had the chance, we just had to figure out where you were in the first place." San explained, wincing at the bruises she had gained.

"That's what I'm so confused about," Mari responded, her body relaxing at the familiar presence of her friends. Jongho twirled the baseball bat in his hands as he approached the two of them, his proud expression faltering at the sight of the wounds she endured. "How did you get here? How did you even figure out where this place is? I haven't even completely found out where I am yet."

"Well...," Jongho thought for a moment, gesturing toward the door as he spoke, "we had a little help to even get this far." All three of you turned your attention to the door when the jingling of keys began to echo within the room, finding Hongjoong and fiery red hair leaned up against the doorframe with the keys to the room twirling around his ring finger. 

When he noticed that he was being stared at, he stopped and smiled. "Now that that's all said and done," Hongjoong began, holding out his hand to show off the snake ring that Jaerin had supposedly thrown away, "you ready to get out of here, princess?"


End file.
